This is an updated and expanded article to a thread I posted on Twitter recently.
Exclusive:
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Brand New Good Health Pass: @id2020 launch a New Cross-Sector Initiative to Restore Global Travel and Restart the Global Economy. New Partnership Including @Mastercard @iproov @ibm @commons_prjct @Blok_BioScience @Clear @CCI_CovidCreds https://t.co/c1GxU676Cr
— Sikh For Truth (@SikhForTruth) February 9, 2021
In February 2021, ID2020 launched a new cross sector initiative called the Good Health Pass to restore global travel and to restart the global economy. This new partnership amongst many included: Mastercard, IProov, IBM, The Commons Project, Clear and the Covid Credentials Initiative.
ID2020 is a global public-private partnership that harnesses the collective power of nonprofits, corporations, and governments to promote the adoption and ethical implementation of user- managed, privacy-protecting, and portable digital identity solutions.
They have said: “Our members are creating a blueprint for interoperable digital identity and health pass systems and building a safe path to restore international travel and restart the global economy.”
At the launch: “There’s one thing the world agrees on – we need to address the health concerns today to support a return to normalcy,” said Ajay Bhalla, President of Cyber & Intelligence at Mastercard. “Delivering a global, interoperable health pass system can only happen if we come together in a way that meets the needs of everyone involved. This Collaborative will be critical in helping to define how we connect the pieces that will bring travel back safely, spark job creation and jumpstart the world’s economic engine.”
This is the same ID2020 who in 2018 said that Immunization would be the key entry point for global digital identity systems. Specifically, to identify and track those currently missing out — to achieve 100% immunization coverage.
The article states: “To enable digital identity at scale, we will need to identify and leverage many entry points. Immunization service delivery presents a tremendous opportunity to provide children with a durable, portable and secure digital identity early in life, enabling access to a wider range of social services, while also improving access to the health interventions all children need and deserve.”
“One of the biggest needs is for affordable, secure digital identification systems that can store a child’s medical history, and that can be accessed even in places without reliable electricity. That might seem a tall order, but it is both achievable and necessary.” – Dr Seth Berkley, CEO of Gavi.
The same message was reinforced at the 2018 World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland, were Gavi announced digital identity as its core focus. ID2020 the digital identity alliance and its partners Gavi the vaccine alliance along with Microsoft launched a new program to provide digital ID with vaccines. The program was to leverage immunization as an opportunity to establish a digital identity system.
By contrast, digital health credentials can be printed (e.g. as a QR code) or stored on an individual’s mobile phone. They enhance user privacy, and “bind” an individual’s identity to their test result or vaccination certificate, thus enabling real-time, fraud-resistant digital verification.
The Bangladeshi Government, along with Gavi the Vaccine Alliance and ID2020 have already trailed the digitisation of the vaccination process and can uniquely identity infants through biometrics, this first was done at the district-level and then it was to be scaled up and out.
“ID2020 unveiled its latest good digital identity program in partnership with the Access to Information (a2i) Program of the Government of Bangladesh, the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) and Gavi. Recognizing the opportunity for immunization to serve as a platform for digital identity, this program leverages existing vaccination and birth registration operations to offer newborns a persistent and portable biometrically-linked digital identity.”
The purpose: “Information is required regarding the provision of digital identity services as part of the wider program for the digitisation of vaccination processes. The service provider will need to interoperate with healthcare systems and make use of biometric data gathered by the program in the identification of individual beneficiaries. The individuals to be identified will initially be adults although child ID will need to be issued as part of phase 2 including authentication against child biometrics.”
The point is that this has been done before be it a low scale.
A2i and its partners Gavi and ID2020 are committed to contribute to the development of a unique ID for infants and the digitisation of vaccination processes in Bangladesh. The unique ID would provide infant and children with a portable, biometrically-linked digital ID either at the point of birth registration or at the time of their immunizations, simultaneously supporting three shared objectives:
For the UK’s journey, the next steps outlined for UK’s use of digital identity systems, the digital identity strategy board is developing new principles to boost secure use of digital identity within the UK.
“Digital technology is helping us through the pandemic and continues to improve the way we live, work and access vital services”. – The UK Digital Infrastructure Minister Matt Warman MP has said.
In June 2020, the UK was advised by ID2020 the Digital Identity Alliance for the rollout of a potential UK wide digital vaccine certificate:
The documents states: “The Certification offers technology companies a roadmap for the development of inclusive digital identity solutions. To be eligible for certification, solutions must adhere to the functional outcomes.”
It wrote: “We are encouraging governments and other implementing entities considering digital health credentials to adopt the ID2020 Certification Technical Requirements or even require certification of all technology solutions as a condition for consideration.”
And “Solutions that adhere to ID2020’s stringent Certification Technical Requirements; a comprehensive trust framework; legislative and regulatory actions, developed through extensive and open stakeholder engagement, digital health credentials may be worth considering.”
The road to digital identity starts with the certificate of vaccine id 2019, next will be full social control and compliance using nudging types and learned behaviours and once they bolt on digital payments then the fun really does begin.
The Good Health Pass white paper outlines that the Good Health Pass Digital Trust Ecosystem, which is based on digital wallets holding digital IDs and health credentials, sets out the principles of privacy, security, user control, choice, consent, trust, inclusivity, and urgency.
“The focus of the project is to get the different sectors involved all working together” – ID2020 Executive Director Dakota Gruener said in the press conference and Mastercard’s Chris Reid noted “they have already been involved in trials at Gatwick and Heathrow airports”
Vaccine Passports are the gateway drug for a global digital identity system, to form the next foundation for access to services. Personal health scores, credit, banking, and social media. They want everything about you encapsulated into one digital package.
To create a digital global health pass, he said, “We have months. We need to arrive at something that’s as interoperable as a global passport as fast as we can in order to help open the economy.” – Said Drummond Reed the Chief Trust Officer of Evernym.
They are calling for a global digital passport for a global digital vaccine for the age of global digital identity.
Also from the Good Health Pass white paper, “We also acknowledge that digital health pass systems are being considered for a wide range of other purposes, including for the return to workplaces, schools and universities, sports & event venues, and more.”
“While the advisability of such uses is beyond the scope of this paper, the principles were designed to be extensible to other applications, as needed.”
That’s it right there folks, it will be extendable and scalable, that is the aim, set down the platform so it can grow and mature.
France 24 also reported: Kaevats, who advises the WHO on digital health issues, said “It would be impossible to create a global digital ID in the coming months and that a mix of paper and electronic certificates was more likely”. – Marten Kaevats, an adviser to the Estonian government on technology said.
You see the wording: “A global digital ID”. That’s the game right there.
And “For fans of broader use of self-sovereign identity, getting this right for COVID-19 health credentials may be a blueprint for future credential interoperability for other applications.”
Biometrics and self-sovereign digital identity solutions which naturally start with vaccine passports as the key entry point will soon join forces for all international travel and the domestic hospitality industries.
The World Travel & Tourism Council the WTTC, a London based trade group also issued new recommendations in its global guidelines for safe and seamless traveller Journey report, “underscoring the requirements for a swift and coordinated implementation of biometrics and digital traveller identity services.”
The WTTC have outlined these best practices for a seamless traveller journey:
“Travelers create a single digital identity containing their biographic data and any additional information required for identity establishment and verification. This is used across all stakeholders, public and private, in the traveller’s journey.”
“Allow travellers to enrol early in the traveller journey, so they can use their digital identity across the end-to-end journey.”
“Digital identity management is done in a decentralized manner, where the traveller maintains and controls access to their data. “
“Traveller’s digital identity data is governed by a globally agreed-upon set of standards, allowing for interoperability across governments and all sectors of the Travel & Tourism sector.”
Not only can digital identity be used for overseas travel but for hotel stays.
“Digital identity and the many ways it can be used to meet healthcare challenges now associated with traveling and staying in hotels is core to recovery” as the payments digital identity tracker revealed.
Will that be iris scan, contactless room key, or both? For their part, hotels are also getting spiffed up for the eventual return of guests with a host of COVID-19 digital upgrades that will become as familiar a check-in routine as entering the lobby.
“The hospitality industry has experienced its own pandemic-related struggles, but some hotel chains and management firms have looked to digital ID solutions to address consumers’ safety concerns. Several months into the pandemic, MGM Resorts debuted a contactless check-in process that allows customers to use its mobile app to verify themselves, pay for their rooms and even receive digital keys.”
Biometric ID’s will play a huge role in our new identity needs.
Its looking like there is no going back to the old normal, the new normal brings a dystopian level of coercive 1984 level of control and technocratic subservience. We could well find some of us are permanently locked out of society. Vaccine Passports are self-sovereign digital identity enablers. Just looking down the list of endorsements for the Good Health Pass web site, pretty much every company involved are pioneers in digital identity and biometric solutions. It is obvious to see that this is not about a virus, it’s about your data and your new found digital identity.
