How the US Is Quietly Rolling Out Digital ID
Digital ID is presented as convenient and efficient with single login access to government and banking services
But, the System can also restrict access to employment, finance, travel, and healthcare
Rollout occurring gradually and quietly in both the UK, the US and beyond.
UK Model
• Core systems: OneLogin, gov.uk wallet, Digital Verification Services
• Strategy: build infrastructure, frame as voluntary, use private providers, reduce paper use
• Goal: make digital processes the default without direct legislation
US Parallels
• Federal system: login.gov used by IRS, Social Security, Veterans Affairs
• State level: mobile driver’s licences developed under Department of Homeland Security standards
• Legal mechanism: executive orders and agency rulemaking rather than congressional acts
• Private providers: ID.me, Experian, LexisNexis verify identity for benefits and taxation
• Presented as voluntary but effectively becomes mandatory once widely adopted
Mechanisms of Expansion
• Convenience and efficiency used as main selling points
• Banks and employers encouraged to adopt digital checks to avoid liability
• E-Verify likely to become mandatory and linked to digital ID
• Paper processes slowed or discouraged to push digital as default
• Need for legal protection, ensuring equal service for non-digital credentials
Timeline and Legal Context
• UK ahead of US in rollout, possible completion by 2029
• US Real ID enforcement began in 2025 and login.gov expanding quickly
• De facto national digital ID possible by 2030 without congressional approval
• UK Identity Documents Act of 2010 bans central register
• US lacks equivalent legal safeguard, relying on potential privacy challenges
Projected US Digital ID Structure
• Real ID as physical credential
• Mobile driver’s licences as digital presentation layer
• login.gov as federal single sign-on
• Private identity brokers handling verification for benefits, banking, and employment
• Appears decentralized but functions as a unified national system
• Paper alternatives expected to be marginalized
Proposed Legal Safeguards
• Ban on federal digital ID
• Ban on federal funding for state digital ID programs
• Ban on federal use of private digital ID providers
• Anti-coercion laws prohibiting digital-only requirements
• Legal right to access services without digital credentials
Citizen Actions Suggested
• Refuse digital-only credentials
• Pressure or boycott companies enforcing digital-only checks
• Submit freedom of information requests on digital ID pilots and contracts
• Coordinate activism and share information
• Demand equal treatment for paper credentials
Core Message
• Rollout pattern: voluntary adoption, private intermediaries, reduction of paper, full enforcement
• Risk of surveillance and control increases with integration of digital currency systems
• Calls for collective resistance, awareness, and maintaining non-digital options