The launch event of the Electronic Identification, Authentication and Trust Services Regulation (eIDAS) was held in Brussels on 14th October 2014. The event was organised by the European Commission (EC) eIDAS Task force, the GSMA and other trade associations (ACSIEL, DTCE and EUROSMART) and brought together over 75 EU, government and private sector representatives, including the President of Estonia, the European Parliament, the Italian Presidency of the Council and EC Vice President Neelie Kroes.
The event celebrated the eIDAS Regulation, which entered into force on the 17th September 2014. The regulation will enable seamless electronic transactions across the EU, making it easier and safer for individuals, businesses and public administrations in different countries to identify and authenticate themselves, sign documents and check the authenticity of documents online.
In an ever connected world, where public and private services become more digitised, there is growing awareness of the impact on privacy and the need to protect electronic identity to make it easier and safer to use digital services. “We need this political signal in favour of electronic identification to increase consumer confidence, and Trust is a must” said Mr. Martin Whitehead, Director of GSMA Europe.
During the event, the Regulation was signed electronically by Antonello Giacomelli, the Italian secretary of state in charge of telecommunications (who is also acting as President of the Telecoms Council) and the European Parliament’s rapporteur, Marita Ulvskogtook.
As a testimony of the importance of the mobile technology Vice-President Neelie Kroes also used a mobile signature solution to officially sign a letter to the new President elected Jean-Claude Juncker calling the EC, and other EU institutions to go truly digital. “I believe the European Union should modernise and turn all public administrations digital…and the Commission should lead by example and become paperless, both in-house and when interacting with the public,” said Kroes.
The ceremony was followed by a panel discussion in which European institutions and industry leaders from the mobile, banking and smart card industry discussed the economic benefits, challenges and business opportunities arising from the Regulation.
The panel agreed that a predictable regulatory environment for electronic identity and trust services is key to promoting global interoperability, thereby encouraging the roll-out of trustworthy digital identity solutions with positive impact on innovation and efficiency. They also discussed the key role of governments in supporting the private sector’s development and the adoption of strategic partnerships in the digital identity ecosystem with collaborative platforms for cooperation between the public and the private sector.
“Mobile is the most ubiquitous telecommunications medium on the planet. With accessibility the key to the success of digital services, it makes sense to leverage this technology” highlighted Mr Whitehead in his closing speech.
While the new Regulation is expected to foster mobile identity take-up in Europe and internationally, to ensure that these benefits are fully realised, the eIDAS implementation phase will require national governments and regulators to develop frameworks in which mobile identity services and its ecosystem providers can thrive. These frameworks must be flexible and technology neutral in order to balance the security and privacy regulatory requirements against the economic and social opportunities that mobile technology and data can provide.
“The GSMA urges national governments and regulatory bodies to engage with the GSMA’s Mobile Connect initiative to ensure that the unique strengths of mobile for identification and authentication are made available as widely as possible. Mobile identity new services, like the GSMA’s Mobile Connect, play a key role in unlocking the potential of Europe’s digital and personal data economy and foster trust, confidence and convenience while boosting economic growth and connectivity in the Digital Single Market” concluded Mr Whitehead.
The event received extensive media coverage. To find some of the public available information see below:
• European Commission MEMO following the ceremony
• Commissioner’s Kroes speech “eID: unlocking confidence and convenience in a Digital Single Market”
• Audio-visual coverage
Related Documents:
• Agenda eIDAS event
• Neelie Kroes Letter to Jean-Claude Juncker e-Signed
• Regulation e-signed by co-legislators
• EC infographic about the impact of eIDAS on a small SME doing business across border
Other related articles
• Europolitics: Publicity Stunt e-identification
• The Register: New e-Signature rules: Shouldn’t WE be using it?