inews24 2024-10-15
[Original Article] https://www.inews24.com/view/1772029
Professor Hyun-Ok Oh, Department of Information Systems, Hanyang University
Professor Hyun-Ok Oh, Department of Information Systems, Hanyang University [Photo: Professor Hyun-Ok Oh]
At the end of 2023, South Korea ranked first by a significant margin in the OECD’s evaluation of digital government among member countries, marking the second consecutive win following its top position in 2019. Contributing to this success in evolving into a premier digital platform government is the blockchain-based Decentralized Identity (DID) mobile ID developed by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety.
Since the early 2000s, the South Korean government has led the era of online public services. With the issuance of blockchain DID mobile driver's licenses in 2022, it has paved the way for a new era of mobile identification, advancing into a more sophisticated digital platform government. With government-issued mobile IDs, citizens can now verify their identities in person and access various remote services, such as opening bank accounts, seamlessly.
Beginning in December, the rollout of mobile resident registration cards will expand the benefits of mobile IDs to the entire population, positioning South Korea as a global leader in mobile identification. Governments worldwide are now focusing on South Korea's digital platform government and its ‘K-DID’ model.
The fact that South Korea’s mobile ID is based on blockchain DID technology, an optimal solution for handling citizens' sensitive personal information, strengthens calls for its adoption on a global scale. DID technology stores identification information on individuals' smartphones and keeps issuance data in decentralized blockchain server nodes, ensuring protection against unauthorized access and forgery while empowering data self-sovereignty and enabling various identity-based services.
DID technology not only adds convenience to citizens' daily lives through various services but also enhances transparency in politics, fostering public trust and helping to prevent societal division and unrest. For example, when suspicion arises over election results, it incurs significant social costs, as seen in the 2021 U.S. presidential election when protests erupted, leading to the storming of the Capitol after Trump’s loss.
DID technology can help prevent such turmoil. By enabling secure voter identity verification that blocks tampering, DID builds trust in electoral processes. Additionally, DID’s “zero-knowledge proof” capability allows users to confirm possession of necessary data without revealing it, supporting anonymous voting while safeguarding voters' identities.
Thus, South Korea’s digital platform government, which has initiated the blockchain DID-based mobile ID era with technology highly suitable for identity verification, is gaining global recognition. In April, the World Bank visited the Ministry of the Interior and Safety to review the mobile ID issuance system and discuss digital ID adoption in developing countries.
Riding the momentum of global interest in adopting K-DID, a key strategy to enhance South Korea’s digital platform government leadership is to make K-DID open source. When governments worldwide consider adopting new technologies, even the most advanced solutions can raise concerns over dependency if associated with a specific country or company, especially in the realm of public services. Thus, whether a technology aligns with global standards is critical in determining its suitability for adoption.
Before K-DID can achieve global traction, it must overcome this barrier by expanding its global ecosystem through open-sourcing. By making K-DID open source, developers everywhere can build additional functions and services, strengthening the technology’s reliability and transparency. The influx of ideas from global companies, independent developers, and various communities would allow K-DID to evolve into a more comprehensive and advanced DID solution. This development will bolster K-DID’s potential to lead the global digital ID standard and enhance the international leadership of South Korea's digital platform government.
With the current recognition and attention directed at K-DID from overseas, the government should accelerate support for its open-sourcing and promote close collaboration with the private sector. Open-sourcing K-DID is a key strategy to expedite the global expansion of South Korea’s world-class digital platform government, enhancing national competitiveness and leading the way toward improving lives worldwide.
– Hyun-Ok Oh, Professor of Information Systems, Hanyang University
– Reporter Jin-Sung Jung (js4210@inews24.com)
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