UK Scraps Mandatory Digital ID Plans as Crypto Privacy Tech Gains Ground

The UK government, under Prime Minister Keir Starmer, has reversed its plan to mandate a centralized digital ID for verifying a worker's right to work, opting instead for an optional system around 2029. This policy shift followed intense criticism from cross-party politicians, civil liberties groups, and nearly three million signatories on a parliamentary petition, who warned the centralized system risked creating an "Orwellian nightmare" vulnerable to hacking and mission creep. While digital right-to-work checks will remain mandatory, the digital ID will be offered alongside alternative electronic documentation. This rollback reflects growing public unease regarding centralized identifiers, mirroring debates around Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs). Meanwhile, the European Union is proceeding with its digital identity framework but is exploring privacy-preserving technologies like zero-knowledge proofs, similar to decentralized identity tools on blockchains, which aim to balance compliance with data minimization.

(Source：Cointelegraph)