The European Commission has tasked Nordic technology firms Scytáles and Netcompany-Intrasoft with helping develop a secure European digital identity system. The firms will collaborate to produce a ‘wallet’ that will help EU citizens interact with digital services across its 27 member states.
As governments and businesses increasingly transfer access points into the digital realm, safeguarding the identity of citizens while enabling them to easily access services has become an increasingly important challenge.
In June 2021, amid the Covid-19 pandemic, the European Commission set out to tackle the problem of verifying an individual’s identity remotely, while still maintaining a user-friendly digital offering.
The result of the initiative was a set of proposals to give every EU citizen a strong digital identity credentials, which can be recognised anywhere in the Union. These credentials will be accessible from a digital wallet, while being available to anyone from their mobile device – enabling any EU citizen or business the ability to prove their identity or any entitlements quickly and reliably.
The innovation aims to make previously complicated and time-consuming processes simple and quick – potentially things like signing business contracts, filing tax returns or opening bank accounts will become streamlined, digital services.
Delivering such an expansive offering is easier said than done, though. As a result, the European Commission has drafted in consultants from two Nordic firms to provide technology development, advisory and support services for the European Digital Identity Wallet project.
Based in Sweden, Scytáles is a firm specialising in the development of ISO-Mobile Driving Licenses, Mobile IDs and Derived Mobile IDs. Meanwhile, Netcompany-Intrasoft, part of Denmark-headquartered Netcompany, is a European IT solutions and services group with over 2,800 employees worldwide.
Looking ahead, the wallet will be developed by Scytáles and Netcompany-Intrasoft as a benchmark for secure and transparent digital identification across the EU. It will be offered to EU member states and other stakeholders for implementing the requirements of the regulation on a framework for a European Digital Identity.
Speaking on the contract, Konstantin Papaxanthis, CEO of Scytáles, commented, “Since the global pandemic the digitalisation of processes for both companies and public services has made safe digital identification imperative. The EU Digital Wallet will simplify daily life for EU citizens and businesses and create growth opportunities for public and private services across the EU.”
Sourced from Consultancy.eu