Yahoo Finance Big issue with Australia's game-changing new digital ID: 'Impossible'
Aussies have been given the first pieces of information about what the TEx system will include.
A cyber security expert has issued a warning to the government after Australia's "world-leading" concept for nationwide digital ID technology was unveiled. The 'Trust Exchange' (or TEx for short) could be a game-changer in terms of proving your identity and also simplifying annoying everyday tasks.
From setting up a bank account to applying for a job or proving your age at an interstate pub, the centralised system is designed to act as proof of ID and it should also help you limit how much you need to share externally. Cyber Safety Solutions founder Susan McLean told Yahoo Finance the concept looks "very promising", but the government has a huge hurdle to overcome.
We live in an age of fear around cyber attacks, with high-profile hacks impacting millions of Australians.
Even a shred of doubt is enough to put the public off embracing the new technology - and that is a big issue.
"There is very little detail being provided about the backend, about what it is, how it works, and what sort of safety and security settings are going to be," McLean explained.
Are you worried about the digital ID? Email stew.perrie@yahooinc.com
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"There is nothing that could be 100 per cent secure. Like, that's impossible, but you need to be like 98 per cent. We've seen with organisations that should know better, that should be able to do better, that have not, such as banks, Medibank and Optus.
"So I think the government is going to have to win over the consumer to start with because there's a lack of trust. There's a lack of confidence in a government being able to do anything."
University of New South Wales professor of cybersecurity Richard Buckland agreed, describing the centralised system as a "honeypot"
"I've never seen a system that's not hack-able," he told the ABC.
What is TEx and how will the digital ID work?
The TEx is in a "proof-of-concept stage" but could be ready for trial release early next year.
The form of ID, which will not be compulsory, will be accessed via your myGov wallet and contain highly sensitive information like:
Date of birth
Address
Citizenship or visa status
Qualifications
Occupational licences
Working with children checks
BREAK IT DOWN: Bill Shorten used a simple example of booking a hotel room.
Instead of handing over a passport or driver's licence, the hotel could scan TEx and you'd authorise that information to be shared digitally.
If you were applying for a job, you could use the "verify my identity" tool to choose what documents to share with your new employer.
“You control what details are exchanged,” he explained to the National Press Club. “You then have in your wallet a record of sharing, say, your passport and trade certificate with your employer.”
If you didn't want to share the documents, the government could vouch for you through a "digital token".
This "digital thumbs up" would be sufficient to prove your identity without you having to give copies away.
Here's how Shorten explained the "digital thumbs up".
"Take the case of someone going to the local RSL and wanting to prove they’re from interstate or that they’re over 18 … they’d just hold their phone up to a QR code or tap-to-pay machine and a digital token will be sent to the club vouching for their identity, address and age," Shorten said.
"None of that information needs to be kept by the club. The token will be a valuable promise to the club, but of zero value to a cybercriminal."
He said TEx could be used when setting up a bank account, buying a mobile phone or trying to rent a property.
Is it safe to have a digital ID?
The government is still working out a lot, like if further legislation will be needed for the new form of ID.
Shorten admitted privacy is an "important issue".
"One of the tests we're applying to what we do is can it be trusted? Can people have control? Can people have consent?" he said.
A red flag for Australians could be due to a spate of individual data hacks on myGov.
A myGov spokesperson told Yahoo Finance that the system is "secure", but that hasn't stopped cyber criminals from weaselling their way into Aussies' most personal information.
A report recently revealed that scammers had been able to infiltrate Centrelink, Australian Taxation Office (ATO) and Medicare accounts by creating fake myGov accounts. Fraudsters then made false claims for Centrelink payments or bogus tax claims worth thousands of dollars.
The investigation into myGov fraud discovered scammers were accessing Aussies’ accounts through a process called “unauthorised linking”.
This is where a genuine myGov customer’s service account is linked with a fake myGov account created by a fraudster, without their knowledge.
Commonwealth Ombudsman Ian Anderson found myGov’s current security measures did not “adequately protect people” from their accounts being linked and exploited where there had been identity theft.
McLean said the government better be prepared to show they've made significant changes to prevent hackers from stealing information uploaded to the system.
"This gets down to educating the consumer about what personalised information is, what is absolutely required by law, how it's obtained, how it's held, all of that," she told Yahoo Finance.
"Then we need to look at selling the system, because if there's no confidence in the system then it's not going to be used."
One of the tests we're applying to what we do is can it be trusted? Can people have control? Can people have consent?"
McLean said the "proof will be in the pudding" when further details of the system are unveiled and it's gone through a proper test.
Telstra and Google welcomed the "opportunity to be involved" in bringing the concept to life, while Commonwealth Bank, SEEK and the Tech Council of Australia have given in-principle support.
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