UK May Use Facebook Logins for National Identity Scheme
Earlier this week, Facebook announced that it had officially reached one billion users, and at times it does seem like the world and its mother is on Facebook. Now it seems the UK government may allow citizens to use Facebook logins to access to public services. The move is part of IDA, the Identity Assurance programme, which aims to provide people with an easier way to log on to online government services.
According to The Independent, the government is set to announce the first list of potential "certified providers" for the programme in the next few weeks. IDA will see people apply for services including tax credits and passports using one of their already established logins to prove their identity. The Independent reports that the Cabinet Office is understood to have had discussions with the Post Office, banks, cell phone companies, and numerous tech companies including Facebook, Microsoft, Google, PayPal and BT.
According to the Independent, chosen companies will have their identification systems subjected to security testing. If they make it through, they'll be awarded an "Identity Provider" kitemark, which means they're on the list of approved organizations set to be announced on October 22.
In a blog post published earlier this week, the UK government stressed that such a system would mean 'no big IT programme and no big government database,' and said that will put people in charge of their own information. The idea is that by offering a choice of methods for logging in, people remain in control of the verification of their identity.
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Jane McEntegart is a writer, editor, and marketing communications professional with 17 years of experience in the technology industry. She has written about a wide range of technology topics, including smartphones, tablets, and game consoles. Her articles have been published in Tom's Guide, Tom's Hardware, MobileSyrup, and Edge Up.
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Richeemxx echondoNo. Just no. Just stop.Seriously when is enough going to be enough? Almost every dang site out there now days wants you to login with FB, Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn or some other social media crap. There is no reason governments should follow suit.Reply -
ksampanna Must warn all the poor twits who think this is convenient, without realising that whichever service they access via their fb accounts, also has access to their personal profile, photos, activities, etcReply -
srap And I thought that the parlament of my country had the most idiots cramped inside... guess both the Greek and the British proved me wrong.Reply -
assasin32 I wonder why I even both having a scrap email account now days for signing up to websites and such, I should just make a scrap facebook account for all this junk. Sounds easier to deal with, for once I think I found something that facebook may be useful for. I think thats a first on a tech website.Reply