DSPANZ provided a submission to the Senate Standing Committees on Economics to their inquiry on the Digital ID Bill 2023 and Digital ID (Transitional and Consequential Provisions) Bill 2023 on 18 January 2024.
We broadly supported the Digital ID Bills and the intent to allow private sector entities to participate in the Australian Government Digital ID System (AGDIS) and leverage myGovID.
In summary, we provided the following feedback:
- A voluntary system for non-business individuals will create significant cyber security risks for individuals who do not have a Digital ID. The Department of Finance should consider options to protect individuals from identity theft and fraud.
- The interoperability principle may be challenging for some relying parties to support, depending on the chosen fee structure for the AGDIS.
- For Digital ID to be an interoperable economy-wide system, government agencies (particularly the ATO, Department of Education, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and Department of Social Services) should not be able to exempt themselves from accepting any Digital ID providers accredited within then AGDIS.
- DSPANZ has previously raised the opportunity to create a Digital Economy Regulator - a central source for security, certifications, data standards, and other requirements for market participants who leverage Commonwealth Government APIs and digital interactive services. A Digital Economy Regulator could cover entities interacting with AGDIS, CDR, ATO, ABRS, ASIC and Fair Work Commission services. DSPANZ believes this would reduce the overlap in security and data requirements and the overall costs of leveraging these government services, in this case, participating in the AGDIS.
Access a full copy of the submission here.