PETITION TO STOP DIGITAL IDs AND DIGITAL MONEY
To Heads of State and World Leaders:
We, the undersigned, are very concerned that digital IDs — including the digital health IDs currently being rolled out by the World Health Organization, mandatory Digital IDs required to work in the United Kingdom, the EU biometric entry/exit system and the Digital Wallet — can be used to restrict individual rights to freedom and privacy, as well as human rights which sit at the very heart of democracy worldwide. We are also concerned about programmable digital money – either in the form of Central Bank Digital Currencies or Stable Coins.
Digital IDs, whether they are Digital Health IDs, Real IDs or Digital Driver’s Licenses, are not merely convenient ways to verify health or vaccination status, travel, or pay for goods and services. According to tech experts, mandatory, interoperable digital IDs of any sort may provide the functional platform for the installation of a Chinese-style “Social Credit System.”
Using Digital IDs, China has instituted a “Social Credit System” that gives it total control over every person in the nation. This platform tracks and integrates the following aspects of every individual: medical history, social media posts, bank accounts, credit cards, shopping history, internet search history, residence, place of employment, criminal history, facial and gait recognition, network of relationships, religious activities, participation (or the lack thereof) in the “Xi-Jinping thought” app, and real-time physical location. Information from all these digital sources is analyzed through Artificial Intelligence to assign each citizen a Social Credit Score, quantifying how reliably compliant that person is to Chinese Communist diktats.
While a Digital ID, in the beginning, may only carry digital information regarding whether an individual is vaccinated or is licensed to drive, for example, the rest of the functionality of the Chinese Social Credit System can be integrated into a Digital ID system very quickly. In the wrong hands, Digital IDs could issue in a system of global mass surveillance and totalitarian control.
According to a chart issued by the World Economic Forum, Digital IDs will be required to access healthcare, open a bank account, travel, access government benefits, pay taxes, vote, participate in social media, buy or sell online, and own a communications device (such as a computer or a cell phone). Digital IDs of any sort, however benign at their inception, will likely serve as the precursors to the full-blown Digital ID envisioned by the World Economic Forum.
The ominous potential for the unauthorized disclosure of propriety data and other abuses cannot be overstated, and must not be tolerated. Such a system is clearly antithetical to the foundational principles of democracy and human rights and must not be allowed to take root.
Regarding digital money, it is distinct from cash, which can be used privately, anywhere by anyone. Digital money, however, is traceable and programmable. The issuer of the funds will know who is buying what, from whom, when and where. This traceability is a breach of the right to privacy.
Further, the issuer of the money, whether it be a central or a private bank, will be able to control its use. The money could be programmed, for example, to be valid to buy only certain things or to expire at a certain time. If a person is under quarantine, the digital money could only be used if the person is at home. Access to digital money could be shut off entirely, if for example, the person attends a protest or criticizes a government decision on social media – similar to what happens in China.
Digital currencies are distinct from Bitcoin, which by its nature, is decentralized.
We oppose the imposition of mandatory Digital IDs or digital money in any form.