Research report
Following the UK Government’s announcement of the Digital Identity scheme in September 2025, a number of surveys have explored public opinion surrounding the initiative.
Most publicly available research is quantitative, and predominantly focuses on the proportion of the UK population that supports or opposes the Digital ID scheme. Yet it is difficult to know from surveys what understanding respondents have of the Digital Identity scheme, how much variation there is in respondent understanding and how closely this aligns to the current specifics of the scheme. Quantitative research methods do not allow for a detailed exploration of this or the “why” underpinning public support or opposition against the scheme.
To gain a deeper context, Hippo commissioned a qualitative research report in December 2025 to engage with the public and with the aim of understanding the downtrend in sentiment toward the national Digital ID scheme. The full research report, which is downloadable using the form on this page, explores public understanding and attitudes toward the initiative using in-depth interviews, and makes a set of recommendations for further research.
What’s inside this report?:
- Learn about misconceptions: A central finding of the research was a generally low familiarity with the specific details of the scheme among participants.
- Understand the need for clarity: The study highlights the challenge and the necessity of clear communication on a national identity scheme and its associated benefits.
- Explore citizens' needs: Security, convenience and trust were key to participants in this study. Security arose as the primary "deal-breaker" for successful adoption of digital IDs.
The full research report is accompanied by a high level summary of the findings, available to all. For this overview, download the summary below.
Download the full report
