The Digital ID Disaster India Tried to Warn Us About

The hosts focus on three main case studies to show how digital ID can go wrong. First is India’s Aadhaar system—the largest biometric ID program in the world—which links people’s fingerprints, eye scans, addresses, and bank accounts to a single number. They explain how, starting in 2018, hundreds of millions of these records were leaked and sold on hacking forums, enabling large-scale identity theft, fraudulent loans, stolen benefits, and even situations where vulnerable people were cut off from food aid—all made effectively irreversible because biometric data can’t be “reset.”

https://thewire.in/government/rules-under-digital-data-privacy-act-notified-staggered-implementation-over-18-months
https://www.techpolicy.press/lessons-from-national-digital-id-systems-for-privacy-security-and-trust-in-the-ai-age/
https://www.1kosmos.com/identity-management/digital-identity-spotlight-india/
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/10/9/starmer-meets-modi-what-the-uk-can-learn-from-indias-digital-ids
https://www.vice.com/en/article/aadhaar-hack-insecure-biometric-id-system/
https://www.cyberdaily.au/security/9772-biometric-data-of-more-than-800-million-indians-briefly-on-sale-on-hacking-forum
https://www.biometricupdate.com/202511/india-notifies-its-sweeping-digital-personal-data-protection-rules

They then move to Europe and the UK, where an EU-wide digital ID wallet is planned for launch by December 2026. This wallet would merge passports, biometrics, financial data, and health records into one “master key” to a person’s identity. The hosts warn that in a region already hit by major telecom and health data breaches, putting everything into one app turns every hack into “identity theft on steroids,” with problems following you across borders. They also raise alarms about Apple, Google, and other big tech firms potentially helping run these IDs, arguing that their history of data leaks and mass tracking makes them poor custodians of something this powerful.

https://www.biometricupdate.com/202505/eic-2025-eudi-wallet-has-a-data-oversharing-problem
https://cadeproject.org/updates/concerns-raised-over-eu-digital-id-wallets-impact-on-privacy-and-discrimination/
https://www.cryptomathic.com/blog/key-vulnerabilities-of-eudi-arf
https://identitymanagementinstitute.org/digital-identity-wallet-benefits-and-risks/
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/unmasking-hidden-dangers-eudi-wallet-what-you-need-know-stay-aum6e
https://www.biometricupdate.com/202412/cryptographers-warn-about-eudi-wallet-privacy
https://www.digital-identity-wallet.eu/news/technical-insights-from-the-first-eudi-wallet-pilots-lessons-for-the-next-phase/

Finally, they turn to Canada, which is preparing a similar all-in-one digital ID despite already losing an estimated $7.2 billion a year to identity theft affecting 2.2 million people annually. They point to Ottawa’s digital failures—Phoenix pay, ArriveCAN, the 2025 Canada Post Identity Plus crash that locked nearly 97,000 people out of a leadership vote—and to past use of financial tools against political opponents, like freezing trucker convoy accounts. Their concern is that a centralized digital ID could supercharge fraud and give governments and third parties unprecedented power to monitor, punish, or blacklist citizens. They close by urging Canadians who are worried to contact their MPs and push for real safeguards—or to stop the rollout altogether.

https://www.nfp.ca/insights/the-rise-of-identity-theft-emerging-cyber-risks-for-individuals-and-how-to-protect-yourself/
https://www.junonews.com/p/liberal-budget-quietly-pushes-for
https://oipc.sk.ca/privacy-and-transparency-in-the-digital-identity-ecosystem-in-canada/
https://www.weareinnovation.global/canadas-digital-id-promises-privacy-and-perils/

https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/auditor-general-report-arrivecan-1.7111043
https://www.iphoneincanada.ca/2025/03/03/canada-post-identity-app-fails-blocks-voters-in-liberal-election/
https://www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/article-conservative-mps-financial-records-leaked-in-alleged-breach-of-party/
https://www.rebelnews.com/conservatives_say_any_digital_id_mandate_must_be_voluntary
https://truenorthwire.com/2025/11/conservatives-blast-liberals-over-rise-in-extortion-demand-tougher-sentencing/
https://www.ipc.on.ca/sites/default/files/legacy/Resources/id-theft-e.pdf

Chapters:
0:02 – What Is Digital ID & Why It Matters
1:00 – India’s Aadhaar Breach & Biometric Fallout
7:03 – EU’s All-in-One Digital Wallet Plan
13:01 – Big Tech Involvement & “Identity Theft on Steroids”
15:02 – Canada’s Digital ID Push & $7.2B in Annual Fraud
24:28 – Can Canadians Stop a Dystopian Digital ID Future?

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