Do Brits generally approve of the new compulsory national digital ID?

Is there a reason the nursery was hacked?
Or M&S?

A cybersecurity expert has stated that it will become a target for hackers.

it’s not about me as an individual, it’s about the collective data that makes it a target.

And?

Op public opinion probably was more like these so what posts but there’s also concern on both sides of Starmer / Labour over access and control.

I.D cards don't bother me as i carried one for 2 decades. Digital I.D with every detail held on it is too many steps too far. The system would be hacked in no time and cause chaos and personal harm to so many. It would do bugger all to stop illegal immigration and would also cost billions to start with then millions every year going forward. It could and in fact would be used to track and control in the future.

I've no problem with it.

I am not sure whether this means everyone needs to get a new digital ID card.

Or does it mean that those who already have a digital ID such as a passport which clearly demonstrates the right to live and work in UK will be able to continue to use that?

No. Its the thin end of the wedge. We already have plenty of methods of ID.

There's nothing in the mainstream media suggesting that Multiverse has been appointed. Just a few social media posts, that are purely speculation. It will probably be developed by a consortium of companies, drawing on their varying expertise. They may have done some preliminary work, but the next phases will need to go to tender.

Laying the foundations for universal income when there are too few jobs due to everything going online and AI "helping" us to streamline costs. For universal income (to prevent civil unrest when there are too few jobs available) they need to identify who they have and where they are.

Can I ask a question. My disabled adult DC does not have a phone or any digital item that is portable (their choice, linked to severe autism and social anxiety). Will there be an option to have a physical card?

8 have no problem with ID cards.

I have a massive problem with it being digital only.

Its not for me.

Britcard won’t make any difference because employers who are unscrupulous will carry on using illegal immigrants. They will find a way around. Also, it’s not actually stopping people coming into the country - that’s where the focus should be.

l don’t trust a joined up digital online system. Far too easy for abusing the system by individuals who have access, by the tech company/companies involved and a real threat of government overreach. There’s also the real possibility of cyber attacks.

I do wonder if it could be used to curb low level crime in future for example everyone would need to scan ID on way into supermarket to keep out known shoplifters. I suspect some people would think that’s unreasonable but I’ve seen so many blokes leg it out the door of the local Tescos clutching booze. Might the streets then become free of litter, then? AI cameras spot someone dropping litter, the drone equipped with handcuffs appears, and airlifts the offender to the village lock-up?

Even I (somebody who is hugely wary of government overreach) might have supported the idea on the basis of preventing low-level crime, pre-2020. But the problem is that I simply don't trust any government not to move the goalposts to redefine anything they like as "low-level crime", especially since 2020, when visiting your own family was redefined as criminal activity, and Parliamentary scrutiny was totally bypassed then. And Trump hasn't helped the cause either: I can't have faith in "there are safeguards to prevent government overreach". He has not hesitated to dismantle those safeguards that prevent the US president from being world dictator, and Farage is probably watching with interest.

He keeps banging on that it's for work so us old retired folks shouldn't need one anyway.

Unbothered. We already have passports and driving licences, this is no different.

And yes it’s compulsory but most people already have one of the above and if they don’t, it’s because they don’t travel or drive, not because they think the government is out to get them.

With the usual cost overruns on large public sector projects we can probably multiply that by a factor of 3 at least. So very roughly £60 per adult, and what's the bet they push the costs onto the individual, as they do with drivers licenses, passports etc. I wonder how far they'll get with this when the already cash strapped general public realise they are going to have to shell out hundreds of pound per household for something the vast majority couldn't care less about.

I was anti having to carry an id card at all times, but I see this as bringing together all government databases so they know what’s happening. Whilst I get those saying they don’t want government to know I also though it’s necessary for better services in the future. Many countries have them, we don’t have huge stories about them being hacked. As an employer if someone non British gets a job they give me dob and a code, i put it in a site and see their picture and that they have the right to work, it’s much better than looking at a passport. To me it’s all very welcome, we have loads of legacy systems, government it needs a massive overhaul, bring together passport, ni, hmrc, nhs, social security, driving. In time it could link so much, if you fail an eye test it could notify dvla and keep us all safer, if you lose your job it could notify benefits and adjust any welfare you’re due. It will take a decade or more to be really useful, but let’s get started.

I’m not bothered in the slightest. I don’t have the headspace to worry about what ifs like this. It’s a digital world, let’s embrace it.

They claim it's to stop employers employing people illegally. Somehow, I've managed to check hundreds of employees" right to work and I e never had a problem. ID cards are not needed for this purpose therefore im against it. Prosecutions and big fines will cure the problem of employing people without the right to work.

If they said they were going to randomly check people to ensure they should be here then I could understand it, but they've clearly said that is not the purpose.

How would it work for the elderly?
My dad is 85 and doesn't have a mobile. At his age he'd never be able to work one if he did.

Also, a lot of fraud prevention is common sense. DH had his ID stolen. We got a phone call from UC when they were doing the rapid claim system, and I told them we hadn't tried to claim. The same man phoned again, and I said the same thing. The third time, I said 'i recognise your voice... You've phoned me twice already. He then looked at his list and there had been 4 applications in DH's name. The man had just been working down his list and hadn't even noticed that 4 of the applicants were the same. It caused us all sorts of issues because we received Tax Credits at the time, so it automatically cancelled our Tax Credits and there was no mechanism to roll it back, so they had to use a special procedure to reinstate them and then they had to manually calculate our Tax Credits each month for months afterwards. Then, when we did move over to Universal z Credit, we had to go through extra checks to make sure we weren't committing fraud. Gun times.

Anyway, my point is that any system will be exploited. I don't think this will change anything.

Clearly we have polar opinions on this since you have replied to all my posts on here.

Thats fine.

The countries you list have not been without controversies over the years, based on exactly the concerns I raised.

Lets not forget we have had a few “dry runs” of this with Covid vacc passports, debate around facial recognition tech and per mile taxation on roads, and high street shops data harvesting effectively to the point where you need to give your data to shop with them physically.

Have considered the other perspective on this. Of course a unified ID would make life more convenient, I just don’t think the benefits outweigh the costs.

I use the NHS.
ACSG (2022), Synnovis(2024) just a couple of recent attacks where patient data was stolen.

Took me a long time to trust mumsnet itself again after the big 2016 hack, (and again a data breech in 2019) My password was one of those stolen and put on the dark web, i can still see it on the "is my password out there" type interrogators. I am "lucky" that I have always had different passwords for everything. And now I don't care about "continuity" and delete/open accounts every so often.

I saw this on Facebook and it did make me chuckle. I have no issue with a digital ID. My life is not the sort that brings a risk by people knowing my details. But I do think that anything compulsory comes with a cost to freedom that needs to be considered.

I think if they had said it was a card like a driving licence with an app option if you wanted, a lot of people wouldn't have been so against it.

I don’t think I have a problem with having a paper / plastic ID card but I won’t have a digital one, and most people I’ve discussed it with feel the same. I’ve not heard what is being proposed for people who don’t have smart phones, but I will give up my phone before I’ll have an ID app on it.