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Japan IDs All Its Citizens
Edis Krad writes "While RealID in the US is a threat whose implementation is a ways in the future, the Japanese long ago implemented something similar; and there has been very little complaint raised about it. The Juki Net (Residents Registration Network — link in Japanese) has been silently developing since 1992. The system involves an 11-digit unique number to identify every citizen in Japan, and the data stored against that ID covers name, address, date of birth, and gender. Many Japanese citizens seem to be oblivious that such a government-run network exists. Juki Net had a spotlight shone on it recently because a number of citizens around the country sued against it, citing concerns of information misuse or leakage. And while an Osaka court ruled against the system, the Japanese Supreme Court has just ruled it is not unconstitutional, on the grounds that the data will be used in a bona-fide manner and there's no risk of leakage. While there is a longstanding registration system for us foreigners in Japan, what astonishes me is how the government can secretly implement such a system for its citizens, and how little concern the media and Japanese citizens in general display about the privacy implications."
It most likely passed through with so few complaints because of how different the culture is there from here. Something like this might seem like the ridiculously obvious thing to do for them. You can't count on very body to think the same as Americans, for better and worse.
Once you start despising the jerks, you become one.
Finland and Sweden was ahead in the whole census. Finland and Sweden started census in about middle of year 1600. and year 1750 already had every person in register.
At leat on start of year 2001, Finland and Denmark were only countries on world what could make census just with a computers and there were no need to go by door to door or using a mixed other kind databases together.
And at least on Finland, Civil register includes a lots of other information too than just name, address, phonenumber, education, marriage status. But it includes information of buildings and all kind other stuff what helps to build charts almost everything.
http://www.vaestorekisterikeskus.fi/vrk/home.nsf/www/populationinformationsystem
http://www.maistraatti.fi/en/index.html
http://tilastokeskus.fi/index_en.html
And even that Finland collects this kind adata alots, most important thing is that there are laws for individuals to protect their indentity.