Microsoft To Provide Digital IDs To 1 Billion Undocumented People Around The World [VIDEO]
ByUndocumented people from around the world will no loner remain undocumented anymore with Microsoft's latest project. The tech giant is teaming up with Accenture to provide digital IDs to provide legal identification to billions who have no official documents.
The project, called ID2020, is part of the United Nation's 2030 Sustainable Development Goal which aims to provide legal identity for all the people around the world. By having official documents, everyone will have access to health care and education. As of the moment, there are reportedly 1.1 billion people who are undocumented.
David Treat, a managing director in Accenture's financial services, said that the absence of identification makes someone marginalized and disenfranchised from the society. By providing an identification, all of that can change. He also added that having an identity, much more a digital one, is a basic human right.
Microsoft and Accenture will utilize blockchain technology to make this project possible. Blockchain was originally used as a public ledger to track all bitcoin transactions. However, its use was adapted in other industries as well.
By using blockchain, it will be easier to store and access data that would have otherwise been impossible to access. That's because blockchain is compatible with different systems in different industries.
That means a person coming from a war-torn country won't have to worry if they leave any important documents behind because it can be accessed through the blockchain system.
Dakota Gruener, executive director at ID2020, said they want this technology to be responsive to the individual needs of the people.
Microsoft and Accenture have already created a prototype from an existing platform used by Accenture to power the UN's High Commissioner for Refugees biometric identity management system.
Aside from the two companies, Cisco Systems and PricewaterhouseCoopers are also part of the project. They are calling more companies to join them to make the project into a reality.
