ACTIVITIES :: eGovernment :: Policy :: eIDm

eIDm

Citizens, as they move across the EU, want easy access to public administrations and services. Businesses often need to verify the identity of their customers. Just like a plastic identify card in your wallet, eIDM guarantees the identity of any entity or person, fast and reliably without the person having to be physically present.

For eIDM, the EU takes a pragmatic approach, seeking interoperability between national identity systems rather than taking on the onerous task of inventing and deploying completely new identity management systems. This way, national regulations can be respected while still creating the essential function of eIDM.

Putting public services on-line requires more than identity: document authentication is critical, too. A physical birth certificate can be examined for its provenance, but currently there is no pan-European digital equivalent. The EU will, therefore, set up a reference framework for authenticated electronic documents across the continent.