Brazil is making significant strides in digital identity verification by leveraging blockchain technology to enhance their identification systems. This move aims to improve security, efficiency, and streamline processes for the country’s population.
The Brazilian government has announced plans to integrate blockchain into its national identity program, with Rio de Janeiro, Goiás, and Paraná leading the way in this groundbreaking initiative. Serpro, Brazil’s national data processing service, is leading the development of a private blockchain platform that will support the revenue service’s shared registry known as b-Cadastros.
This blockchain network will facilitate the search, issuance, and modification of new ID cards and tax registration numbers. Alexandre Amorim, the president of Serpro, emphasizes the importance of blockchain technology in Brazil’s digital identification project, highlighting its immutability and decentralization as key attributes.
At the heart of this effort is the National Civil Identity Card (ICN), an advanced replacement for Brazil’s traditional paper ID cards. The main goal of this project is to centralize the nation’s civil identification system and utilize the ICN database for user authentication when accessing online public services. The new ICN card is a plastic card that enables users to generate a secure digital version, complete with a printed QR code for validation.
In addition to individual security and convenience, the national ID project in Brazil holds strategic significance in combating organized crime, promoting intergovernmental collaboration, simplifying service access, and streamlining administrative records. Implementing blockchain technology also facilitates data exchange among government departments, bringing Brazil closer to unifying identity issuance across its nearly 30 states.
Meanwhile, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, a similar initiative has been unveiled to allow residents to access essential identity documents through a digital wallet. This project relies on QuarkID, a solution developed by Web3 firm Extrimian, and leverages zkSync Era, an Ethereum scaling protocol based on zero-knowledge rollups. Guillermo Villanueva, CEO of Extrimian, emphasizes the monumental significance of this development for Latin American governance and its potential to set a benchmark for integrating blockchain technology for the public welfare.
By adopting blockchain technology in their national identity programs, both Brazil and Argentina are embracing innovation to enhance security, efficiency, and convenience for their populations. These initiatives represent a significant step toward a future where digital identities are protected, easily accessible, and universally recognized.
