This week the Council of the European Union made an announcement. “With a view to ensuring a trusted and secure digital identity for all Europeans, the Council presidency and European Parliament representatives reached today a provisional agreement on a new framework for a European digital identity (eID).”

The proposed new framework would also require member states “to issue a digital wallet under a notified eID scheme, built on common technical standards, following compulsory certification.”

“With the approval of the European digital identity regulation, we are taking a fundamental step so that citizens can have a unique and secure European digital identity,” said Nadia Calviño, acting Spanish first vice-president and minister for economy and digitalisation.

From the announcement:

The revised regulation constitutes a clear paradigm shift for digital identity in Europe aiming to ensure universal access for people and businesses to secure and trustworthy electronic identification and authentication. Under the new law, member states will offer citizens and businesses digital wallets that will be able to link their national digital identities with proof of other personal attributes (e.g., driving licence, diplomas, bank account). Citizens will be able to prove their identity and share electronic documents from their digital wallets with a click of a button on their mobile phone.

The new European digital identity wallets will enable all Europeans to access online services with their national digital identification, which will be recognised throughout Europe, without having to use private identification methods or unnecessarily sharing personal data. User control ensures that only information that needs to be shared will be shared…

The revised law clarifies the scope of the qualified web authentication certificates (QWACs), which ensures that users can verify who is behind a website, while preserving the current well-established industry security rules and standards.
“When finalised, the text will be submitted to the member statesâ(TM) representatives (Coreper) for endorsement. Subject to a legal/linguistic review, the revised regulation will then need to be formally adopted by the Parliament and the Council before it can be published in the EUâ(TM)s Official Journal and enter into force.”