“I Can’t Believe My Public Service Card Will Hold So Much Information” Says Facebook User
A DUBLIN man has branded the government as spies after it was revealed that his Public Service Card contains vital information on him, including his photograph, signature, PPS number and even an expiry date on the card showing when the card expires.
David Lacey told WWN via Facebook Messenger that he was now in two minds whether to destroy the “encyclopedia of his life”, pointing out that he never actually agreed to storing so many important details about himself, anywhere, despite previously granting dozens of smartphone applications access to his camera, credit card details, microphone and his ongoing internet search history for the past 8 years.
“I can’t believe they have my place of birth on the card,” Lacey typed to this reporter, with the instant messenger location settings turned on, “they’re even giving away our genders, for Christ’s sake! That’s not something I’m comfortable sharing with anyone.
“Why don’t they just brand the PPS numbers onto newborn’s arms altogether and be done with it, or chip us like dogs,” he added, ignoring several advertisements for newborn baby clothes and premium dog food that just happened to pop up as he typed, “and they’re forcing people to use this relatively secure card? It’s an absolute disgrace that information can be freely thrown around like this without being able to stop it”.
Minister for Social Protection Regina Doherty has said up to 50 public bodies have access to the data identity set stored on Public Services Cards, but insisted there are no future plans to store more information on the chips.
“We were thinking about implementing a GPS tracking system onto the PSC to help track social welfare claimants, to see if they were working somewhere,” Ms Doherty explained, “but we can do all that now through their Google or Facebook accounts, so there’s no point really”.
Ms Doherty added that having a PSC is mandatory to access certain services, including claiming the social welfare, while also pointing out that the cards are great for cutting up rocks of coke, due to their thickness.