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My Number Card (Myna Card) - What Have I Used It For?

· 5 min read
ひかり
ひかり
Main bloger

This post summarizes how I've used my My Number Card, obtained in 2018, and what conveniences it has brought. I'll also cover the inconvenient aspects.

Things I've Used It For​

  1. Printing Certificates at Convenience Stores
    • Copy of Resident Record
    • Certificate of Income

This is convenient because there's no need to specially visit a city hall (or branch office) and wait in line.

  1. Identity Verification
    • Smartphone communication contracts
    • Opening a securities account
    • Opening a bank account
    • Identity verification for "XXXX Pay" services
    • Identity verification for COVID-19 vaccine appointments

In the future, identity verification might become difficult without a My Number Card. Society is becoming less based on trust, so it might be unavoidable. It's good that I don't have to get a driver's license just for ID purposes when I don't drive. Probably about 20% of people are in this situation.

  1. Tax Returns (Kakutei Shinkoku)

I just had to enter numbers into the form and submit it. It's convenient, as it can also calculate medical expense deductions.

  1. Using it as a Health Insurance Card

It's good not to have to carry my health insurance card, but I've encountered problems several times where it couldn't be used due to bugs in the qualification verification system, so it seems best to carry my physical health insurance card just in case. It's convenient that information on medicines prescribed at pharmacies can be checked on MyNa Portal (especially for people with drug allergies). If I use my health insurance card instead of my Myna Card, will it still calculate medical expenses? I'm not sure about that.

  1. Moving-out Notification

Going to the city hall (or branch office) to submit a moving-out notification during the busy period at the end of March is daunting, but you can submit it online using MyNa Portal. The important thing to remember is not to forget the moving-in notification. (By the way, going to a branch office is less crowded than going to the main city/ward office.) It was a hassle to have to reset my My Number PIN when moving in.

  1. Smartphone Electronic Certificate

You can load your My Number electronic certificate onto your smartphone. It might be convenient as you can log in to MyNa Portal card-less.

Dissatisfactions​

  1. Smartphone App NFC Even though the electronic certificate is on my smartphone, it always requests NFC. It's inconvenient that the app won't open without NFC being enabled, so I hope for improvement.

  2. My Number is Written on It Having the My Number written on the My Number Card creates a risk if it's lost. Although misuse is hard to imagine. I wish it were numberless like a credit card.

  3. Monochrome Photo The photo embedded in the My Number Card is monochrome. Why wasn't it in color?

  4. Troublesome Renewal Due to electronic certificate security, renewals are every 5 years. However, the card's validity period is 10 years. What? It seems it might or might not be improved.

  5. Hospitals Where the Card Cannot Be Used It seems the government provides some subsidies, so I hope they will support it.

  6. Too Many PIN Types There are four types of PINs. I wish there were just one, but is it difficult due to security? I don't know.

  7. Unstylish Card Design I wish it would emulate the design of a radio operator's license.

Probably Misunderstood Things​

There are many off-base criticisms of the My Number Card, so I'll summarize them. Please understand the system before criticizing.

  1. Personal Information Linked from the My Number Card is Extracted This is partially correct. The My Number Card itself only contains basic personal information like address, name, gender, and date of birth. It probably contains less information than a driver's license. To view information linked to the My Number Card, you need to open the linked site and authenticate using the My Number Card. Linked information cannot be viewed without the My Number Card and its PIN. Of course, if you write the PIN on the card and then lose it, various pieces of personal information could be extracted. This point is similar to a cash card.

  2. The PIN is only 4 digits, and security is weak It's incorrect that security is weak. Consider logging into SNS on a computer; you can log in with an ID and password. On SNS, the ID is easily known, so you can log in if you have the password. No matter how complex the password, it's a single-factor authentication. On the other hand, the My Number Card uses two-factor authentication: possession of the card + knowledge of the PIN. The reason Windows and other systems allow logging in with a PIN is that two-factor authentication (possession + memory) is said to be more secure than single-factor authentication using a complex password.

  3. Errors in Health Insurance Card Linkage This is a linkage error by the health insurance association, a human error. The My Number Card is merely a personal authentication mechanism and is not the problem itself. However, there is an argument to be made about how to deal with errors in linkage by health insurance associations. Health insurance information can be checked on MyNa Portal, so it's advisable to check it once.

  4. 100% burden at the counter without a My Number Card is outrageous As before, you can receive a refund by processing it through your health insurance association. However, it seems they will introduce a "qualification certificate" system, which defeats the purpose.