WHAT WAS CLAIMED
Photos show protests in Italy against mandatory digital ID.
OUR VERDICT
False. The photos are from unrelated protests and there is no mandatory digital ID system in Italy.
AAP FACTCHECK - Photos supposedly showing widespread protests against mandatory digital identification (ID) in Italy actually show demonstrations for other causes.
While Italy does have various digital ID systems, there have been no changes to make it compulsory from 2026, as a number of social media posts suggest.
An October 31 Facebook post from an Australian user includes a photo of demonstrators standing on the street amid a cloud of smoke.
"ITALY RISES UP: NATIONWIDE STRIKE AGAINST FORCED DIGITAL ID WALLET," text across the photo reads.
The post itself states: "Massive protests are shaking Italy as citizens from both left and right unite against the government's mandatory Digital ID Wallet plan.
"Millions have refused to pay taxes and called a general strike until the government abandons the EU's forced digital ID rollout, set to be mandatory by 2026."
Another version of the claim appears in a post with a photo of a crowd of people holding flags, banners and signs.
"Digital ID cards have been available in Italy since 2010 but they are voluntary with virtually no uptake by Italians but the government announced that a mandatory EU digital wallet will now be required for all Italian citizens by 2026," the caption reads.
A reverse image search shows the photos are from protests unrelated to digital ID.
The first image was taken by Reuters journalist Remo Casilli during a demonstration in Rome in October 2021 against the government's introduction of COVID-19 'vaccine passports'.
The second photo was captured by EPA photojournalist Luca Zennaro at a September 2025 pro-Palestine protest in Genoa.
While Italy has various forms of digital ID, none have recently been made mandatory.
In December 2024 the government released its IT-Wallet system, which allows people to store digital versions of a driver's licence, health insurance card and disability card.
A government press release on the scheme states the system is voluntary and "accessible to those who choose to give their consent".
"Importantly, individuals can still opt to continue using their physical documents as they always have," it states.
The system is in line with the European Union's (EU) Digital Identity Framework, which says member states must create a digital identity wallet by the end of 2026, however it is not mandatory for residents to use it.
Italian citizens can also apply for a carta d'identità (CIE), a physical card used for identification, travelling within Europe and to access some online government services.
It is embedded with a microchip that records a person's name, place and date of birth, residency, photograph and fingerprints.
From August 2026, old paper versions of the CIE will no longer be valid for Italians wanting to travel within the EU and some Schengen countries after the European Parliament passed regulation on identity card security in 2019.
However, citizens without an electronic CIE will still be able to travel if they have a passport, according to an Italian immigration consultancy.
Online government services can also be accessed through the Public Digital Identity System (SPID), where individuals can log in after linking an identity document to a set of username and password credentials.
To access government service portals, like the Department of Civil Liberties and Immigration website, a CIE or SPID is required.
The Italian government's Digital Italy 2026 plan says that it has a goal for 70 per cent of the population to use digital ID by 2026.
A spokesperson for the Italian government's Agency for Digital Italy told AAP FactCheck the use of digital IDs, including CIE cards and SPID, is not mandatory in the country.
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