Following on from my blogpost on Friday – collating all the various ways in which the government continues to push ID cards at us – it has emerged that the Home Office has put together a blog titled 'Understanding the identity card'.
Some may remember the unintentionally hilarious 'I am Spartacus' video from the Identity & Passport Service that we featured on the site earlier this year; well it seems that despite being a dog's dinner in marketing terms, the IPS has decided to run with their friendly fingerprint idea and produce four more bizarre and deeply misleading videos explaining the project.
The first of the four is handily titled 'Your details will be safe with us'. As you will see if you click the screenshot on the right, they proudly announce that details will be "completely safe". Later in the video the IPS goes so far as to say they have an "excellent track record".
Yet, in 2008 the government lost over 29 million personal records. Amongst the data lost were the details for 25 million child benefit claimants; the Ministry of Justice lost information affecting more than 45,000 people, in some cases revealing their criminal records and credit histories; and the Home Office lost the personal details of 3,000 seasonal agricultural workers – including their passport numbers – when two CDs went missing in the post.
Skipping the maddening 'It’s like having a passport in your pocket' – no, having a passport is like having a passport in your pocket – and 'They help protect your identity' – again, a passport is far better at this. As Toby Stevens, of the Enterprise Privacy Group, argued last year, "in the early days, private companies won't be aware of what an ID card is supposed to look like, nor will they have the equipment to check the cards electronically, so 'flash and dash' is inevitable."
We then come to 'It won't become your life history'. This infomercial begins by saying "identity cards are not designed to track your every move". But then later says "An entry will go on your record when your card is checked – with your permission – against the National Identity Register. This will happen when you do something big, like apply for a mortgage." Begging the question – how is this not tracking?
All in all, the videos are a disgrace. Yet, it is the 'blog' (which you might think bears a passing resemblance to another blog you are presently reading) with Home Office moderated comments, and this three sentence grammar-free buzz-phrase: The new identity card. Fits in your pocket. Does loads – that really irks me.
The new identity card. Most people don't want it. The government has said they're not compulsory. But the Home Office keep spending time and money promoting them.
By Dylan Sharpe
Hat-tip: our friends at NO2ID
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