EP.6 — Citizen 458201
New York | April 23, 2045
The government confirmed today that the citizen formerly known as Daniel Lee will now be officially identified in all public AI systems as “Citizen 458201”, following the nationwide expansion of the Unified Civic Identity Network.
Officials emphasized that personal names remain legally valid for family and social use. However, all interactions involving government services, healthcare, transportation, taxation, employment verification, education, and public safety will now prioritize each citizen’s permanent AI identity number.
According to the Ministry of Civic Administration, numerical identification allows artificial intelligence systems to eliminate duplicate records, prevent identity fraud, and process public services with greater precision.
“Names can be shared. Numbers cannot,” the ministry said during a press briefing. For most residents, the transition appeared uneventful.
Hospital appointments arrived under numerical IDs. Apartment access panels displayed identification codes instead of surnames. Employers received automated hiring reports listing only civic numbers until final confirmation. Even courtroom records began replacing defendants’ names with permanent digital identities.
Privacy advocates warned that the change represents more than administrative modernization. “Names remind us that every person has a story,” one researcher said. “Numbers remind the system only that every person is a record.”
Government officials rejected that criticism, insisting the reform improves efficiency while treating every citizen equally. Outside City Hall, few people discussed the announcement.
Many simply scanned their phones, confirmed their identity numbers, and continued walking. For younger citizens who had grown up with AI governance, introducing themselves by number no longer felt unusual.
The official statement ended with a single sentence. “Identity confirmed.” No names appeared anywhere in the document.
— Joonghwa Byeon
