Scotland just made its digital identity system far more inclusive. The government now actively explores alternatives to biometric checks for ScotAccount, aiming to leave no one behind in the rush to digital public services.
A new equality impact assessment published this week confirms the shift. Knowledge-based questions, trusted public sector data, and even vouching by others are all on the table to verify identity without fingerprints or face scans.
Why Biometrics Alone Won’t Cut It Anymore
Many people still lack passports, driving licences, or the strong digital footprint that biometric systems love. Older citizens, recent immigrants, and low-income households often fall into this gap.
The Scottish Government now admits that relying only on biometrics risks indirect discrimination.
The equality impact assessment is blunt: without wider options, some groups get locked out of online services while others breeze through. That is not the fair, modern Scotland ministers want to build.
Work has already started. Developers are building knowledge-based verification (KBV) that asks personal questions only the real person should know, similar to the security questions your bank uses, but smarter and safer.
New Ways to Prove Who You Are
Several non-biometric routes are moving fast:
- Knowledge-based verification using life-history questions
- Matching against trusted public sector databases (NHS, HMRC, DWP records)
- Vouching system currently in a CivTech challenge, letting a trusted person confirm someone’s identity
- Landline 2FA already live for people without smartphones
- Young Scot card now accepted as valid proof
These steps are already paying off. Last year, Chief Technology Officer Alistair Hann said the service could reach half of all Scottish adults by 2027-28. The new options make that target look realistic, not optimistic.
From Private Beta to Everyday Tool
ScotAccount began quietly in 2023 with Disclosure Scotland, letting people view criminal record checks online. It has grown quickly.
Today users can already:
- Access witness information through Witness Gateway
- Receive payments faster via ScotPayments
- Store reusable personal data in the upcoming MySafe wallet
The public beta opened in July 2025. An app, built with Danish firm Netcompany, arrives in 2026 and will include digital proof of age, perfect for buying alcohol or entering venues without flashing a physical card.
Keeping the Door Open for Everyone
The equality report stresses that online channels must never replace face-to-face services. Citizens who prefer, or need, to visit an office must still be able to do so.
Ministers also want ScotAccount to work smoothly with GOV.UK One Login so people do not end up juggling multiple digital identities across the UK.
Scotland is choosing a different path from many countries that mandate biometrics. Instead of forcing everyone into the same narrow funnel, it is building several doors into the same house.
That feels very Scottish: practical, fair, and determined not to leave anyone stuck outside in the digital cold.
What do you think: is this the right balance between security and inclusion, or should Scotland go even further and ditch biometrics completely? Drop your thoughts below.
