Challenges for Electronic Identity Documents

Abstract

A personal ID card is a certified copy of some personal data which proves the authenticity of the data in an offline setting. Majority of countries either plan or already are running projects aiming to deploy personal identity cards equipped with an electronic chip. Apart from a more reliable protection against forgery, this should give an opportunity to enable electronic services implementing the idea of e-government. In this scenario, personal identity cards have to serve as secure devices for running cryptographic protocols such as authentication, proof of presence, signing electronic documents, etc. In practice, there is a no universally accepted and clear concept of how to use electronic identity cards. Moreover, decisions are often based on myths (e.g. concerning security of smart cards) and tradition (e.g. the concept of qualified signatures) rather than on technical facts and feasibility. This lack of concept resulted so far in numerous strategic mistakes, concerning both the technical layer and business model.