Four problems every state
is facing

Identity is how people reach jobs, benefits, banks, and care. Here is where it breaks down today, and how SEDI helps.
Identity is broken. It's not irreparably broken, but it is broken, and it's going to take all of us together to fix it.
Joe Jackson
Utah Chief Technology Officer | SEDI Summit, April 2026
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ID is vital

Almost everything that matters starts with proving who you are.

TODAY

To start a job, rent a home, get benefits, or see a new doctor, people have to prove who they are. Online, that usually means uploading a photo of a card and a selfie, and each company keeps its own copy. People whose license is out of date, or who have none, can struggle to get through at all.

THE NUMBERS

39%

of adult citizens earning under $30,000 lack a driver license with their current name or address.
University of Maryland CDCE survey, January 2024

25X

How often applicants can be asked for the same information across benefit applications, according to Colorado's state CIO.
Route Fifty, August 2026

WITH SEDI

The state vouches for facts it has already verified, like your name or that you are 21 or older, and you choose which facts to share and with whom. You do not hand over a copy of your whole ID. Your physical ID keeps working, and you get the same services either way.

THE LAW

Selective disclosure
You choose which facts to share. Proving you are 21 or older does not mean handing over your name or address.

Right to physical identity
You can always choose and use a physical ID endorsed by the state.

Freedom from compelled digitization
The state cannot make you use a digital ID in place of a physical one.

WHO IT AFFECTS

Residents
Government benefits
Healthcare
Lawmakers

Fraud

Almost everything that matters starts with proving who you are.

TODAY

During the pandemic, criminals used stolen names and Social Security numbers to claim unemployment benefits at scale. The same stolen data is used to open bank accounts and take out loans in other people's names, and every new data breach adds to the supply.

THE NUMBERS

$212B

in suspicious activity tied to identity in a single year of Bank Secrecy Act reports.

FinCEN analysis of 2021 filings, January 2024

$100B+

in unemployment insurance fraud during the pandemic, the low end of an estimated range of $100 billion to $135 billion.

GAO, September 2023

WITH SEDI

A state-endorsed digital identity is signed by the state and kept in a wallet on your own device. Stolen personal data alone is not enough to produce that signature. And because people share only the facts a service needs, less personal data sits in company systems waiting to be stolen.

THE LAW

Management and control
You manage and control your own digital identity to protect your privacy.

Selective disclosure
You choose which facts to share. Proving you are 21 or older does not mean handing over your name or address.

WHO IT AFFECTS

Financial services
Government benefits
Healthcare
Lawmakers

AI

Almost everything that matters starts with proving who you are.

TODAY

Photo and selfie checks were built for a time when faking a face was hard. Now faces, voices, and documents made with AI can pass them. AI agents are also starting to act for people online, so a business needs to know a real, authorized person stands behind each request.

THE NUMBERS

FinCEN warned in November 2024 that criminals are using generative AI to create fake identity documents, photos, and videos.

FinCEN Alert FIN-2024-Alert004

WITH SEDI

SEDI adds proof, signed by the state, that a request comes from a state-verified ID, while sharing only what is needed. A picture can be faked with AI. A digital signature from the state is checked with math, not by looking at a picture.

IN THEIR WORDS

“[F]or 40 bucks, you can buy an ID that says however old you want to be on the internet. So, having that physical ID is becoming less and less effective.”

Marvin Dodge
Utah Department of Government Operations

Speaking as executive director to the Government Operations Interim Committee, June 2025, Audio: Utah State Legislature

THE LAW

Right to endorsement
If you meet clear, equal standards set in law, the state endorses your digital identity, and cannot withhold or revoke it arbitrarily.

Selective disclosure
You choose which facts to share. Proving you are 21 or older does not mean handing over your name or address.

WHO IT AFFECTS

Financial services
Residents
Lawmakers

Children and social media

Almost everything that matters starts with proving who you are.

TODAY

Proving a user's age or a parent's permission often means uploading a parent's ID or a teen's face scan to each platform, creating new stores of sensitive data about families.

THE NUMBERS

New York and California passed laws in 2024 that limit addictive social media feeds for minors unless a parent consents.

New York SAFE for Kids Act (2024); California SB 976 (2024)

WITH SEDI

With SEDI, a teen can prove only that they are old enough, or a parent can give approval, without revealing a birth date or handing over an ID. Lawmakers still decide when a parent's approval is needed and what a guardian can do.

IN THEIR WORDS

“Digital identity can be used to strengthen not just individuals, but also families, because parents by default should be the guardian of their children's digital identity.”

Chris Bramwell
Utah Chief Privacy Officer
Economic Development and Workforce Services Interim Committee, September 2025

THE LAW

Selective disclosure
You choose which facts to share. Proving you are 21 or older does not mean handing over your name or address.

Freedom from surveillance
The state may not track, profile, or monitor where you use your digital ID, except as authorized by law.

Legislative governance
The legislature sets clear standards for how the state runs digital identity, including who qualifies and how IDs are issued and revoked.

WHO IT AFFECTS

Residents
Lawmakers

What is SEDI?

How State-Endorsed Digital Identity works

How SEDI works

Bring SEDI to your state

The model bill, the public implementation guide, and Utah's experience.

Get the model legislation