The pandemic created a new normal for the whole world. In today’s situation, people are staying at home where they are both working and taking care of themselves and their loved ones at the same time.
Without a choice of leaving, the procurement of goods shifted to online services and delivery. In the Philippines, the lockdown prohibited restaurants from opening due to social distancing, unless it has delivery and pick-up options available.
Due to the current situation, transactions are now going digital. There is nothing wrong with that. Major companies and even governments in other countries have already developed and implemented online strategies for payments and ID verification.
So, what is the problem here? Digitizing services mean verification will also happen online.
As the ID2020 Alliance explained, during the current pandemic is when a computerized version of identity will garner more attention and urgency than before.
The ID2020 Alliance, which is an alliance that is in partnership with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), stresses that digital identity is urgently needed today, and it is currently pushing to hasten the uptake of good digital ID through their projects to close the identity gap.
Digital Identities are permanent sets of records that comprise a set of identifiable personal information managed under a Blockchain mechanism.
In other words, according to ID2020, “digital ID offers access to vital social services and enables them to exercise their rights as citizens and voters and participate in the modern economy. But doing digital ID right means protecting civil liberties and putting control over personal data back where it belongs…in the hands of the individual.”
One of the best examples is E-Estonia of Estonia. The country’s digital society allowed its citizens to have a digital ID that allowed them to access government services, build personal records of achievements in school and work, and travel around the EU.
However, the alliance stated that one in seven people around the world does not have the means to provide identification. So, how will they get access to services, such as health services, that need an ID?
As for the healthcare industry, identification plays a major role in the sector. A patient’s identity displays relevant medical and treatment histories. These records reveal whether the patient is enrolled in insurance programs or other grants that provide coverage in medical expenses.
The only way medical providers understand a patient’s history is by accessing their records. But what if it is inaccessible, not secured, and not verified, or everything mentioned? That is a huge problem for hospitals or clinics that admitted the patient. With digital identities in the healthcare industry, there is a safe and responsible way to access patient data and authenticate it. Healthcare facilities will have no problem double-checking every data encrypted in the document. Each patient’s history and even a physician’s credibility are encrypted with cryptography and can be authenticated through blockchain.
The same goes for other sectors, too; therefore, speeding up authentication and putting more importance and urgency in looking into digital identity solutions.