Australian ponders requiring multiple IDs to sign up for social media, plus more crypto-busting backdoors
- Reference: 1617688504
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2021/04/06/australia_proposes_id_for_social_media/
- Source link:
The [1]Standing Committee on Social Policy and Legal Affairs’ [2]Inquiry into family, domestic and sexual violence delivered its [3]final report last week – on April 1st, in fact.
[4]
The report aims to inform government responses to family, domestic, and sexual violence, and was commissioned after previous plans did not achieve their stated aim of reducing such incidents.
Australian police suggests app to record consent to sexual activity [5]READ MORE
[6]
The Committee was given wide terms of reference, among them to inquire into “All forms of violence against women, including, but not limited to, coercive control and technology-facilitated abuse.”
Several recommendations in the report suggest research on, and measures to ameliorate, technology-facilitated abuse. Fast removal of abusive material is among those recommendations.
Recommendation 30 then suggests the following three measures:
In order to open or maintain an existing social media account, customers should be required by law to identify themselves to a platform using 100 points of identification, in the same way as a person must provide identification for a mobile phone account, or to buy a mobile SIM card.”
Social media platforms must provide those identifying details when requested by the eSafety Commissioner, law enforcement or as directed by a court.
The Government should consider regulating to enable law enforcement agencies to access a platform’s end-to-end encrypted data, by warrant, in matters involving a threat to the physical or mental wellbeing of an individual or in cases of national security.
The first item’s reference to “100 points of identification” describes a common requirement for Australians to produce multiple forms of ID to open a bank account, register for government services and to start a new mobile service. While requirements for the scheme vary across Australia’s jurisdictions, all require at least one primary document – usually a passport, birth certificate or driver’s licence – plus secondary documents such as a national healthcare card, credit card, or taxation assessment notice.
The intention is that requiring ID will make it easier to prevent anonymous trolls, or track those who abuse others online. Which is a fine aim.
But The Register is far from alone in pointing out that volunteering your passport and credit card to a social media company may not be the best idea given, as The Register chronicled today, Facebook [7]leaked personal data from over 500 million users in 2019. And who could forget that [8]LinkedIn lost a lazy 117m passwords in 2016, or that HaveIBeenPwned [9]rates Myspace as the source of the eighth-largest trove of stolen data it has found?
The proposals that social media surrender personal documents on demand request is also problematic, and the call for a backdoor to break end-to-end encryption is doubly so.
[10]
The recommendations are just that and it may be months or years before they are considered, never mind acted upon. Indeed, Australia’s recently demoted attorney-general Christian Porter did not meet with his department about a report on sexual harassment in the workplace for more than a year after its publication. ®
Get our [11]Tech Resources
[1] https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/House/Social_Policy_and_Legal_Affairs
[2] https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/House/Social_Policy_and_Legal_Affairs/Familyviolence
[3] https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/House/Social_Policy_and_Legal_Affairs/Familyviolence/Report
[4] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/legal&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2YGwxS0t1dxOQaTgJj1NsfwAAAI0&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[5] https://www.theregister.com/2021/03/18/consent_app_idea_nsw/
[6] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/legal&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33YGwxS0t1dxOQaTgJj1NsfwAAAI0&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2021/04/05/facebook_data_dump/
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2016/05/24/linkedin_password_leak_hack_crack/
[9] https://haveibeenpwned.com/PwnedWebsites#MySpace
[10] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/legal&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44YGwxS0t1dxOQaTgJj1NsfwAAAI0&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[11] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Redondant
Since the ID check has already been done with the SIM Card why not just use 2FA using the telephone, as it already being done with so many other ID requiring platforms... Problem solved..
A Dilemma...
What do you do when the only viable option to save significant numbers of innocent lives is to create Big Brother?
Your choice: Anarchy or the Panopticon?
False Dilemma...
This will only save innocent lives until the creeps get themselves hired to run the panopticon.
Re: False Dilemma...
No, True Dilemma, as you still end up with one or the other with apparently mo hope of a third option, otherwise one could reject both and be able to keep both from asserting themselves anyway.
Meanwhile in the real world
533million users have had their various details given away after a Facebook breach a couple of years ago.
Social media may value your data but only in terms of what it can do for them, giving all of your personal details up front will do little to prevent online abuse but will mean the majority are entrusting their identities to leaches who will abuse that trust.
Yeah nah
I threw myGovID in the bin as the app wanted me to use my FACE to move the cursor around on screen, FAIL.
A government MP has been pinged for setting up 30+ face Facebook community pages to harass people so this is merely a distraction from people spoofing on desks in parliament house and such.
I'm reasonably sure this is just a dead cat thrown on the table, meant to distract from the fact that the government seems to have an ongoing problem with how women are treated in their party.
Much like any of their other insane thought bubbles (like facial recognition age verification for access to adult websites) it will go away. Or they'll ignore all the advice on the matter and just do it anyway and be shocked when it doesn't work.
I am all in favour of this - how soon can we get t rolled out?
Which party can I vote for to get this sped up?
This may be the one way to put the kybosh on Zuck and his privacy invading pals. These privacy invading monsters rely on near ubiquity in the population. A measure like this will kill them by destroying that ubiquity as so few people would ever offer up this level of data - Even if it is just through laziness, indifference and apathy.
I have to admit that was my first thought: how will they get anyone to sign up in the first place?
I disagree, the proles will just go get their passport and credit card in order to be able to see the cat pics, little Johnny's video or whatever on their feed. They will just see this as a minor amnnoyance, a road block on the way to that sweet dopamine hit.
You need to prove who you are to buy a SIM in Aus?
That seems a bit wrong to me. Disenfranchises all sorts. (And it's creepy.)
Re: You need to prove who you are to buy a SIM in Aus?
I wasn't aware there were countries without that requirement.
Re: You need to prove who you are to buy a SIM in Aus?
You certainly don't here in the UK (just pick 'em up from a newsagent, supermarket, or [1]even Amazon ) – and quite right too, if you ask me. It can be difficult, for example, for a homeless person prove their identity. Requiring such proof would further disenfranchise them. And we really don't want to end up [2]like Dubai .
[1] https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=sim+card
[2] https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2019/09/10/what-is-it-like-live-modern-surveillance-state-look-dubai/
Re: You need to prove who you are to buy a SIM in Aus?
In the UK I needed to provide personal information to add money to a SIM.
It's the same documents...
... you have go give to telcos, hotels, airlines, car rentals, banks, insurance companies, hospitals, schools, etc. etc. I've lost the count of services who required me a copy of my ID card to access them.
None of them ever breached?
And remember - no one forces anybody to join a social network.
Re: It's the same documents...
Sure, these have been, are and will be breached in the future, too.
Short memory?
https://www.theregister.com/2020/10/30/marriott_starwood_hack_fine_just_18_4bn/
However, there are not that many corporations able to lose 500mill IDs in one go, so most incidents get somewhat less publicity ...
ALL social media? Really?
Who do I have to give my ID to to sign up for IRC? Etc, etc.
Re: ALL social media? Really?
Or these forums, for that matter.
Help! Old F*art Needs An Explanation
Quote1: "...a person must provide identification for a mobile phone account...."
Not true in the UK. You can buy a SIM and minutes for cash in any convenience store.
Quote2: "...Social media platforms must provide those identifying details..."
What details? See above.
Quote3: "....enable law enforcement agencies to access a platform’s end-to-end encrypted data...."
But some of us use PRIVATE encryption before messaging enters an "end-to-end encrypted" channel.
We also avail ourselves of the get out mentioned under Quote1 above. (See below for a privately encrypted message)
Perhaps a reader of El Reg -- much better informed than this old f*art -- can explain why anonymous, privately encrypted messaging does not COMPLETELY defeat these Australian proposals.
*
G3mLWnIXAzYZi5cbUVKNg9GzupKnE1Al0jmnKfIX
cXuhEV2tCzihahg9EPeXE7qJExoRGJ4nofSraFwR
0BeDCjKPsvSFgTcfoFs70pUBWTUjS32b2VcVujYx
yp2RSXiDcBEDkLGDwFwvWrK1ah2jEjgFM3Mx03q5
AxGdEb6PkJg1kx4l21AhkLybAhCPml8DkNyHK1yn
0ns9KJkhaVwRMNyHcf0NQ5ydAX2rkpgv27K72FQV
M30Z09GzgBERUv6hCRslOnkV
*
Re: Help! Old F*art Needs An Explanation
Well, not an expert on encryption by a long shot, but before being able to send any kind of message, the proposal would have you provide proof of ID to the platform, so you can kiss anonymity good-bye.
Then there's the fact that setting up private encryption is a hassle not many people will wish to put up with, if we start by supposing that people will even be bothered to give it a thought.
Re: Help! Old F*art STILL Needs An Explanation
Quote:"....the proposal would have you provide proof of ID to the platform...."
*
So......I have an anonymous SIM and some anonymous minutes bought with cash. This gives me a valid mobile phone number.
*
Next step, sign up with "the platform"....name="Mickey Mouse"; phone=
*
So....can I really "kiss anonymity good-bye". I wonder!
Hmm ...
I wonder if Facebook etc. would have to verify the documents they are given are both real and actually relate to the person setting up the account? Or would they just have to store and produce on request the details used to sign up?
Re: Hmm ...
Maybe insist that the info is required on sign up and be made available to the cops; but that it be stored in a way that is unusable to facebook, etc, is so that they cannot use it for advertising, etc.
OK: this would be easy to do technically, however I would expect facebook to say "yes it is in a black box" and the promptly use the data anyway.
Australia
is the new DDR.