My Number Card Privacy/Security Risks

[glimmer]

I’m curious whether there are any potential privacy or security risks with registering a My Number card? The obvious benefits are integration with finance, health insurance, Inkan proof, etc.

However, if all of one’s private identification information is integrated, then if the main database is hacked, which is less a matter of “if” and more a matter of “when”, could that be a potential recipe for disaster?

I specifically opted out of a US nationally recognized ID after reading several articles from security experts detracting the privacy and security risks of a pooled database.

It appears that My Number cards have been having trouble being adopted by the general populace. I’m guessing because of the larger number of elderly people who are resistant to change their ways. Although I’m wondering if there may be a small minority who are also harbor the same hesitation that I have?

All questions and comments are welcome! Thank you!

[mighty58]

You're not alone, privacy and hacking concerns have been repeatedly raised since the idea was first raised, including by organizations like the Bar Association. There isn't widespread trust in the government's IT capabilities.

But on the other hand, the My Numbers already exist, so whether you get a card or not doesn't really change the fact that you are already in the database. The card is just an external manifestation for the end-user, to make life (slightly) more convenient. So if hacking is your primary concern, the only thing the card will add to your already-existing data is your picture.

[glimmer]

Very interesting! I had no idea!

But if I don't use the card for future transactions at doctor, utility bill transactions, etc. then I presume that data will not be linked to the card/number, correct?

After reading your post, I did a search and found an interesting article below. Actually, the best part are the comments!

https://japantoday.com/category/feature ... the-future

I'm going to opt out for now. Curious if anyone else has done the same.

[gulogulo]

At this point, there is no escape?

NISA account-holders who have not notified their brokerage of their MyNumber by the end of 2021 will not be able to continue using the NISA system from 2022. (The grace period for failure to notify your brokerage of your MyNumber ends this year.)

sourced from: https://old.reddit.com/r/JapanFinance/c ... x_reforms/

i want to avoid this BS at all costs but they are making it almost impossible. Dread it being foisted upon me on landing.

The cherry on top is that they're tying MN and vaccination status: https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20 ... na/025000c

Tax'n'vax yay!

[glimmer]

Super informative post, thanks @gulogulo!

Death and taxes, indeed!

[captainspoke]

I was an early adopter. Got the physical card almost as soon as it was available. I add it to any/all of the extra paperwork that goes in with my tax filings here, and IIRC, my banks have at some point gotten it along with some other info that they were asking for. I've done the occasional part time job that asks for it, too (when getting paid for that).

While it probably wouldn't capture everything that's claimable towards a medical expense deduction, having it tied to your yearly medical expenses would be a real plus for tax filing. After all, most people find the tokutei/特定 type of account convenient since they then don't have to bother with that tax filing, and a direct link to your medical expenses could do the same for those.

[glimmer]

Glad to hear that it's working out for you. Thanks for sharing your experience @captainspoke.

[RetireJapan]

I finally broke and applied for mine earlier in the year. Ten weeks later, no sign of it

[glimmer]

If you don’t mind me asking, what made you break?

[Tony]

Building a home made me break. The amount of 住民票s and 印鑑証明書s needed for all the paper work, being able to print them at the convenience store was a blessing, that and the 5000 rakuten points was also a nice bonus.