Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Obama administration moves forward with unique Internet ID for all Americans

engadget.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

121–130 of 199 posts

Re: Obama administration moves forward with unique Internet ID for all Americans

#121

Post by nowarninglabel »

rsingel wrote: post #108
rlpb wrote: post #72

We are going to end up with something sooner or later. The fact is that we want (and can) enter into contracts on the Internet. In order to enforce contracts we must have identities. Since the Government (specifically the judiciary) enforces contracts, this means that we must be entering into these contracts under Government-managed identities. Currently we acquire and prove this Government-managed identity using an…

Sorry the Engadget piece is full of FUD and light on details. I was at the event and covered it for Wired.com. This initiative is coming out of NIST inside the Commerce department, with smart folks there who know this 1) a tough problem, 2) needs to be an open standard and 3) that the feds role here is best as being the ones who convene the people in the room. http://www.wired.com/epicenter/2011/01/obama-strategy-for…

>"There's got to be a better way to prove you are real and legit, than giving some company the right to pull a sub-one dollar sum of money from your bank account and then confirming that to them online"

I've never had any problem with this method, what are your objective quantifications for why a 'internet id' from the Commerce Department would solve this better? Why does taxpayer money need to be spent on a problem that is already solved to a sufficient degree by commercial forces?

Re: Obama administration moves forward with unique Internet ID for all Americans

#122

Post by nkassis »

adamt wrote: post #64
j_baker wrote: post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Just out of curiosity, if the national government in the UK doesn't issue IDs, who does? Counties? Cities?

Passports are issued by the UK Passport Office, and driving licenses by the DVLA (Driving & Vehicles Licensing Association). These are both effectively government agencies. However, as having a passport or a driving license is not compulsory, there were plans to have a national identity card, as is the case in many European countries that would be compulsory for all adults. This has fairly recently been scrapped befo…

500$ a person is quite ridiculous for sure. I don't get either how this could happen.

Re: Obama administration moves forward with unique Internet ID for all Americans

#123

Post by gersh »

I think a government OAuth sounds like a good idea. Verifying your identity based on SSN is pretty insecure. If the commerce department can come up with a secure standard, it can seriously cut down on fraud. Internet anonymity is good for some things, but the government needs to stop people from borrowing in someone else's name.

Security will probably be challenge. This needs to be done right, but it has great potential for cutting down on fraud. With real identity, scammers can blacklisted, and honest can people can transact business better. Despite the FUD, I think this is actually good government.

Re: Obama administration moves forward with unique Internet ID for all Americans

#124

Post by sp4rki »

Why is it that people insist on calling US citizens Americans? Canadians, Chileans, Brazilians, Panamanians, Colombians, etc are all Americans also, and this move does not apply to them at all. The American population is composed of everyone this side of the pond and not of everyone to the north only. Journalists should make a distinction.

Re: Obama administration moves forward with unique Internet ID for all Americans

#125

Post by nkassis »

abrahamsen wrote: post #30
StavrosK wrote: post #3

Is this done anywhere else in the world? It is the scariest of the scary Big Brother measures I've seen recently...

Yes, Denmark: https://www.nemid.nu/ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NemID Most public institutions as well as many private (including the banks) have switched to this system. Our government already know just about everything about us (e.g. few people need to fill out tax forms), so this has not been very controversial. The largest controversy has been with the security.

"(e.g. few people need to fill out tax forms)"

Actually I don't get why the gov makes people do one in the US and Canada. Most people have their income reported to the gov by their employer. That information should be downloadable by people and then what is missing could be filled in, mistakes fixed, deductions not already calculated added...

Re: Obama administration moves forward with unique Internet ID for all Americans

#126

Post by feawgo »

nowarninglabel wrote: post #121
rsingel wrote: post #108

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sorry the Engadget piece is full of FUD and light on details. I was at the event and covered it for Wired.com. This initiative is coming out of NIST inside the Commerce department, with smart folks there who know this 1) a tough problem, 2) needs to be an open standard and 3) that the feds role here is best as being the ones who convene the people in the room. http://www.wired.com/epicenter/2011/01/obama-strategy-for…

>"There's got to be a better way to prove you are real and legit, than giving some company the right to pull a sub-one dollar sum of money from your bank account and then confirming that to them online" I've never had any problem with this method, what are your objective quantifications for why a 'internet id' from the Commerce Department would solve this better? Why does taxpayer money need to be spent on a problem…

No intelligent person can look at the current system and think it's solved sufficiently. Right now enormous sums of time money and energy are spent fighting fraud, and lots of businesses simply aren't viable because of these flaws.

We're all wasting lots of money because of these identity problems.

Re: Obama administration moves forward with unique Internet ID for all Americans

#127

Post by feawgo »

jrockway wrote: post #55

I'll be getting one of these when hell freezes over. If that means starting my own Internet, then that's exactly what I'll do.

You don't even know what's being proposed and you're already deadset against it.

Ideologically driven idiots like you make the world a worse place. Learn first, then react.

Thanks for the reminder that you're an idiot who reacts first, learns never. Kindly make yourself your own Internet. You won't be missed on this one.

Re: Obama administration moves forward with unique Internet ID for all Americans

#128

Post by contextfree »

So far as I can tell what is actually being discussed is an official certification scheme for third-party identity providers. This would make it more feasible for third-party IDs to be accepted in contexts where they're currently not. I don't see how that can be reasonably characterized as a "unique Internet ID for all Americans", but whatevs.

Re: Obama administration moves forward with unique Internet ID for all Americans

#129

Post by feawgo »

colanderman wrote: post #101
jrockway wrote: post #55

I'll be getting one of these when hell freezes over. If that means starting my own Internet, then that's exactly what I'll do.

I don't understand, will this ID be required to connect to the Internet? If not (say it's only used like SSNs are now) I don't see how starting your own internet would help.

There are no details. jrockway is just a reactionary idiot who freaks out with literally no available information.

Don't treat him like a reasonable adult. He isn't one.

Re: Obama administration moves forward with unique Internet ID for all Americans

#130

Post by feawgo »

forensic wrote: post #119
prodigal_erik wrote: post #86

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The commerce clause in particular has been used to justify most anything, including laws around production of your own goods because that can function as an alternative to interstate commerce. But strict constructionism isn't an answer either. We shouldn't only have a right to bear 18th century arms, or let computer files be searched without a warrant merely because they aren't on paper. It's always going to be subje…

That's why Jesus invented amendments to the constitution.

thanks for the reminder that HN is now reddit.
Post reply on HN