Japan's ID system causes more concern amid payment glitches, erroneous deliveries

Tokyo, June 20 (IANS) Japan's "My Number" national identification card system caused further concern following a number of new errors, with the government saying on Tuesday that numerous cards were erroneously linked to the wrong cardholders' payment methods.

In the latest debacle involving the system's privacy concerns, 172 cards were erroneously linked to online payment methods, including those connected to credit cards of the wrong cardholders, reports Xinhua news agency.

The results of a government survey regarding the errors that were linked to a state campaign to incentivise more people to sign up for their own My Number card showed that under the scheme where an applicant was given 20,000 yen ($141) worth of points, vast numbers of errors occurred.

According to the survey, 172 errors related to the campaign were found in 131 municipalities, with 136 incidents of sensitive information being entered while a different person was still logged in to the system, and more than 30 cases where mistaken IDs were entered for payment purposes by the cardholder.

Among other cases adding to those plaguing the unpopular system, there were two cases in which ID cards were erroneously issued to people with the same names as the intended recipients, the government said on Tuesday.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications claimed that the cards issued in error were not misused.

The ever-rising cases of errors regarding the cards, however, have punctuated the risk the cards present for being used fraudulently when it comes to receiving state benefits or tax-related duplicity.

"It was a mistake that should never have happened," Digital Minister Taro Kono told a press conference regarding the erroneous deliveries.

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