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Difficulties faced in the roll out of Japan’s digital ID system, ‘My Number’

Country: Japan

Date range: 2016 – current

Key institutions: Primary: Digital Agency Japan, Japan Agency for the Local Authority Information Systems (J-LIS), Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications Secondary/Other: National Tax Agency, Cabinet Office, Cabinet Secretariat, Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, Internal Revenue Service, central government, local government, banking institutions

Introduction

The My Number or kojinbango system became operational in Japan in 2016 and represented a significant leap forward in Japan’s efforts to digitise government services in a country that still heavily relies on the use of fax machines and only started to move towards phasing out floppy disks in 2021.[i] The OECD’s Digital Economy Outlook 2020 found that only 5.4% of Japanese residents were utilising digital applications at public offices (compared with almost 70% in Estonia, Denmark and Iceland)[ii]. Then Prime Minister Abe Shinzo introduced My Number as a national ID system representing a step towards a ‘single card society.’[iii]

The intent was two-fold; first to simplify the identification of residents by making personal data available across multiple administrative organisations, rather than residents having to compile an array of documents specific to an organisation every time they needed to access a government service; second, to increase the efficiency of government workers themselves through digitisation, saving on operational costs. [iv]

My Number was not the first time the Japanese government had attempted to digitise its services, or to create a single identification number for residents that would replace the array of registration numbers issued across different government services. However, each time prior such a system was attempted it was met with pushback by both private and public interests who feared it could lead to privacy breaches through hacking; or overly intrusive government surveillance of residents.[v] Indeed in the leadup to the roll-out to ‘My Number’, public discussion was focused heavily on the risks inherent in the system, demonstrating a low level of trust.[vi]

Further, the Japanese government’s internal system of ‘fiefdoms among ministries and government agencies and a strong vertical orientation’[vii] is not conducive to a centralised digital system such as My Number. Japan has an approach of ‘decentralisation and devolution’ towards governance, in which government agencies ‘collect and store public data irrespective of what other public organisations do’. My Number has been developed in this government culture, one that believes that government data should not be centralised and struggles with horizontal collaboration between agencies.[viii]

Screenshot from the Cabinet Office Website showing actress Ueto Aya and My Number mascot Maina-chan promoting My Number in 2015.
Source: The JapanTimes

This approach can be contrasted with:

  • the ‘centralisation and control’ approach (in which one key organisation is responsible for the collection/processing/storing/distribution of data and other levels of government follow the standards set by that organisation, creating an environment that makes data-sharing easy); and

the ‘devolution and centralisation’ approach (which allows different agencies to collect, process, etc., but according to a standardised format set by a moderating organisation that also oversees ‘data transactions’ and ensures there is no overlap in collection programmes.)[ix]

Intervention

My Number Card and an IC Card Reader
Source Wikipedia,

‘My Number’ is made up of three components, with each encountering a unique set of challenges:

  1. My Number, a unique identification number that follows all residents from birth (or entry, in the case of foreign residents). This is automatically issued, with the number generated at the central government level and passed to local governments to distribute to residents. The My Number system was built upon a maze of government agencies, with a complicated mix of organisations as stakeholders in the system. This has led to challenges with intra-agency communication of information, with local governments – who are responsible for the practical administration of the My Number services in many ways – often left uninformed and confused.[x] As of May 1, 2020, 806 of Japan’s municipalities (of 1741) had not connected their computer systems to the Mynaportal.[xi]
  2. My Number Card is a card containing an IC (integrated circuit) chip containing electronic certificates that allow online authentication of an individual’s identity and to digitally sign electronic documents. The ‘My Number Card’ can also serve as a form of photo identification. The card is optional, and residents must apply to receive it, with processing time being approximately one month. Many residents did not perceive any benefit to applying for a My Number Card, so they didn’t obtain one.[xii]     
  3. Mynaportal (contraction for ‘My Number Portal’) which allows residents to access administrative services online. Access to the Mynaportal is only available to holders of a My Number Card in conjunction with the use of an IC card reader attached to their computer and a PIN, a system which simultaneously lowers the potential for identity fraud whilst increasing barriers to access, especially for the elderly. [xiii] In the future the need for an IC-card reader could be replaced by smartphones, using the NFC readers available in all new smart phones.  

The major barriers preventing meaningful uptake of the My Number infrastructure can therefore generally be summarised as:

  • Usability, with users required to follow many steps and purchase special equipment.
  • Further to usability, the lack of digital literacy. Compared to other OECD countries there is relatively low digital literacy in Japan due to limited introduction to IT skills during schooling, and limited opportunities for re-education/upskilling in new technologies after entering the workplace. There is also low digital literacy amongst the elderly, in a country that has the oldest population in the world.[xiv] 
  • Low levels of trust in the reliability and safety of a digital identification system, and therefore a low level of public buy-in.
  • Internal barriers amongst government institutions that acted as a limiter on the efficient delivery of the service.

All taken together, this resulted in a low level of participation in the My Number program. During the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020, the central government saw an opportunity to increase the uptake of the My Number Card by allowing residents to apply for a ¥100 000 relief payment through the Mynaportal, rather than by mail application. Only approximately 15% of people in Japan held My Number Cards at the time and the government saw this as an opportunity to increase participation in their digital identification program.

Lessons learned

Unfortunately, in trying to utilise the pandemic relief payments to increase participation in My Number, the Japanese central government had not adequately appreciated the implications of delivering a major welfare program via a service that had not properly penetrated society.

The announcement that applications for relief payments could be made online resulted in a sudden influx of users trying to submit their applications via a portal system that had been significantly underutilised to this point, culminating in system failures. Those applying for a My Number Card for the first time – in a population used to same-day issuance of bank and point cards – found out they would need to wait at least a month to receive their My Number Card.

As for those who already held a card, many had not used them at all and therefore didn’t realise they would need an IC card reader and their PIN to access the portal and complete the application. Even if they did have a reader, many people had forgotten their PINs and locked themselves out of their account – with PIN resets only possible at the municipal offices for security reasons.

Altogether this resulted in a rush into municipal offices for help during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, at a time when people were still being encouraged to socially distance and limit interactions with others, resulting in public health concerns. It was also discovered that the online site was unable to prevent duplicate applications, meaning local government officials needed to manually check for duplicate entries. Local government offices became overloaded, with a number even suspending the online applications. Ultimately, delivery of the relief payments was not faster than the mail application and the implications of low participation in the program, as well as the poor usability of the infrastructure for end-users, became apparent.[xv]

Impact

Despite the challenges faced during the relief payment distribution, the Japanese central government has pushed ahead with its Ny Number Card promotions, understanding that digitisation is inevitable. Through continued efforts to respond to the difficult lessons learned during the pandemic, uptake of My Number cards has increased to 38% of residents as of September 2021 (from approximately 15% in April 2020; though still far short of the target 100% coverage by the end of the fiscal year 2022 [xvi]).

They’ve been able to do so through a combination of incentive programs and new services that truly move My Number towards being a usable digital identification system. Initially, My Number was limited to only three areas of government use – taxation, social welfare, and disaster response, with the potential to be extended to other services in the future. As of 2021, the My Number Card also serves as a national health insurance card and users can choose to share their medical information across providers via their My Number Card. As of November 2021, only approximately 8% of health providers had the necessary card-reader facilities, with the government focusing on increasing that infrastructure over the next 2-3 years, which should increase the perceived usefulness of the My Number Card. There is a further aim to incorporate driver’s licenses and foreign residence cards into the My Number Card by 2025, increasing its usefulness as a form of identification. Additionally, a ‘points’ system provides shopping points to users who sign up for their My Number Card and who register certain services to their cards, such as their health insurance card, and bank accounts, adding up to ¥20 000 in total incentives. [xvii]

In an attempt to counter the ‘digital defeat’ experienced during the pandemic, a new Digital Agency was launched by the central government in September 2021. While responsible for the wider digitisation processes within the whole government, My Number is also included under the Agency’s purview, including the challenge of how to increase the uptake of the digital ID. The integration of the national health care system into the My Number Card is a success of the agency[xviii], and the Digital Agency perhaps represents a turn away from Japan’s ‘decentralisation and devolution’ approach – at least in the context of My Number. Despite the initial hardships in implementing its digital identification system Japan – and other policymakers – have plenty to learn from the roll-out of My Number, hopefully resulting in smoother delivery of digital services in the future

Additional resources

J-LIS Individual Number Card https://www.kojinbango-card.go.jp/en-mynumber/

Japan’s Digital Agency  https://www.digital.go.jp/en/

This case study was authored by Rachel Smith.

[i] Jyoti Mann, “Japan Decides It’s Time to Stop Using Floppy Disks, Report Says,” News, Business Insider, September 3, 2022, https://www.businessinsider.com/japan-calls-for-end-of-floppy-disks-report-2022-9.

[ii] Chitrali Parashar, “Japan’s Digital Agency: Another Shot in the Dark or an Emblem of Change,” Blog, ORF, November 11, 2021, https://www.orfonline.org/expert-speak/japans-digital-agency/.

[iii] Eiichiro Okuyama, “Japan’s National ID System Poses Risks & Advantages,” Blog, Keio University International Center for the Internet & Society, January 31, 2015, http://kipis.sfc.keio.ac.jp/japans-national-id-system-poses-risks-advantages/.

[iv] Kaori Iwasaki, “Issues with the My Number System Exposed by COVID-19 Measures,” Japan Research Institute 3, no. 4 (2020): 8.

[v] Akira Nakamura and Kiyoshi Suzuki, “Japan’s Attempts to Digitalise Government: An Introduction of ‘My Number’ System in Reforming Public Management,” in Public Service Excellence in the 21st Century, ed. Alikhan Baimenov and Panos Liverakos (Singapore: Springer Singapore, 2019), 145–67, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-3215-9_5.

[vi] “Risks of Using ‘My Number,’” News, The Japan Times, March 25, 2013, https://www.japantimes.co.jp/opinion/2013/03/25/commentary/japan-commentary/risks-of-using-my-number/; “‘My Number’ Is Dangerous,” News, The Japan Times, May 30, 2013, https://www.japantimes.co.jp/opinion/2013/05/30/editorials/my-number-is-dangerous/; Okuyama, “Japan’s ID Risks and Advantages.”

[vii] Nakamura and Suzuki, “Japan’s Attempts to Digitalise Government.”

[viii] Nakamura and Suzuki.

[ix] Nakamura and Suzuki.

[x] Nakamura and Suzuki.

[xi] Iwasaki, “Issues with the My Number System Exposed by COVID-19 Measures.”

[xii] “Can the New Digital Agency Transform Japan into a Tech-Savvy Society?,” nippon.com, January 28, 2022, https://www.nippon.com/en/in-depth/d00773/.

[xiii] Iwasaki, “Issues with the My Number System Exposed by COVID-19 Measures.”

[xiv] Keiichi Kaya, “日本の高齢者のITスキルが、世界の中でも著しく低い理由 (The Reason Why the IT Skills of Japan’s Elderly Are Strikingly Low in the World),” News, Newsweek日本版 (Japanese edition), January 22, 2020, https://www.newsweekjapan.jp/kaya/2020/01/it.php; OECD, Creating Responsive Adult Learning Opportunities in Japan, Getting Skills Right (Paris: OECD Publishing, 2021), https://doi.org/10.1787/cfe1ccd2-en.

[xv] Iwasaki, “Issues with the My Number System Exposed by COVID-19 Measures”; “Editorial: Japan Gov’t Must Seriously Reflect on My Number Cards’ Lack of Usefulness,” Mainichi Daily News, May 30, 2020, https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20200530/p2a/00m/0na/010000c.

[xvi] “Can the New Digital Agency Transform Japan into a Tech-Savvy Society?”

[xvii] Adam Ang, “Japan Rolls out ID Authentication Tech with Facial Recognition for Health Insurance Access,” News, Healthcare IT News, November 2, 2021, https://www.healthcareitnews.com/news/asia/japan-rolls-out-id-authentication-tech-facial-recognition-health-insurance-access; “Can the New Digital Agency Transform Japan into a Tech-Savvy Society?”; Harukata Takenaka, “Japan’s Digital Minister Makishima Karen: Technology as a Means to Streamline Public Life,” News, nippon.com, August 16, 2022, https://www.nippon.com/en/in-depth/a07708/.

[xviii] Raymond Yamamoto and Karen Ejersbo Iversen, “The First Year of Japan’s Digital Agency: In Pursuit of Coherence and Identity,” PacNet, September 9, 2022, https://pacforum.org/publication/pacnet-52-the-first-year-of-japans-digital-agency-in-pursuit-of-coherence-and-identity.