Bhutan joins 50-in-5; Malaysia boosts digital ID security

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Asian nations Bhutan and Malaysia are improving their digital identity infrastructure—Bhutan recently joined the 50-in-5 campaign as the 39th member, and Malaysia upgraded its nationwide MyDigital ID registration kiosks.

Bhutan joins 50-in-5 to build privacy-preserving digital ID

Earlier this June, the Royal Government of Bhutan joined the 50-in-5 campaign as its 39th member, a move aimed at boosting the nation’s ambitions for a privacy-preserving digital identity and accelerating the development and adoption of digital public infrastructure (DPI).

Bhutan is currently implementing its decentralized National Identity System, the Bhutan NDI, and the 50-in-5 campaign will help support the nation’s “ongoing efforts to build trusted digital foundations.” This initiative will provide citizens with secure, privacy-preserving digital credentials that enable seamless access to public and private-sector services.

“Bhutan’s participation in the 50-in-5 campaign reflects our commitment to building a trusted, inclusive, and future-ready digital ecosystem that places people at the center of innovation,” commented Jigme Tenzing, the secretary of GovTech Agency Bhutan. “Through Bhutan NDI and our broader Digital Public Infrastructure initiatives, we are creating secure digital foundations that empower citizens, strengthen service delivery, and unlock new opportunities for economic growth and digital inclusion.”

Bhutan is the sixth country to join the campaign in April, following Algeria, Benin, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, and Colombia.

Its membership allows for the growth of peer-assisted DPI development. By joining the campaign, Bhutan aims to implement a privacy-preserving, user-centric digital ID ecosystem.

The 50-in-5 campaign aims to help nations of the Global South to build and operationalize at least one component of DPI in an inclusive, secure, and interoperable way.

Malaysia adds facial biometric verification for MyDigital ID

Elsewhere, Malaysia is upgrading its digital ID system, MyDigital ID, by adding a real-time biometric verification to its registration kiosks as a new security layer.

Malaysia’s MyDigital ID’s new facial biometric feature will be based on the National Registration Department (JPN) database, local news outlet The Star reported.

The National Security Council (NSC) said the new feature will improve the accuracy of digital identity verification and reduce the risk of misuse and unauthorized data access. The upgrade comes amid concerns over online scams, identity impersonation, data theft, and other cyberattacks in Malaysia.

“This measure is aimed at strengthening the accuracy of identity verification while redu­cing the risk of identity misuse and unauthorised access,” the NFC said. “The increasing use of digital services by the public, businesses and government agencies has made the need to protect digital identities more critical amid threats such as online fraud, identity impersonation, data theft and cyber exploitation.”

With the upgrade, existing users will also be required to undergo a periodic facial biometric verification to ensure the security of their digital IDs.

The security upgrades will be implemented in phases at all MyDigital ID kiosks. The NFC stated that users can complete the facial biometric registration via mobile devices by downloading the MyDigital ID app from the Apple App Store (NASDAQ: AAPL), Google Play (NASDAQ: GOOGL), or Huawei AppGallery.

The NSC added that it will continue to work with relevant agencies to coordinate security improvements across other identity platforms, such as MyKad, to keep Malaysian digital identities protected as the Southeast Asian country moves ahead with its digital transformation agenda.

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