South Korea plans to offer its citizens a digital ID secured by blockchain technologies. The country alleges that digital ID will boost the economy.
Proponents of digital identity systems say the technology will make online verification more efficient, thereby controlling activities like accessing government services and money transfers by eliminating the need to log-in via authentication codes and images of government-issued documents.
According to the director-general of Korea’s digital-government bureau, Suh Bo Ram, a digital ID system would boost Korea’s GDP by about 60 trillion won ($42 billion) in 10 years, Bloomberg reported.
He added: “Every service that hasn’t been able to fully transition online will now be able to do so.”
The country’s digital ID will be secured by blockchain technology, making it difficult to hack because the data is decentralized.
Additionally, the technology will ensure that not even the government has access to the data stored on the phone (the digital ID will be a smartphone app), including when, how, and where the digital IDs are used.
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