Tender launched for European digital identity wallet pilots

The European Commission announced the impending launch of at least four large-scale pilots to test the deployment of the European Digital Identity Wallet, with a new call for proposals pointed out by Ronny Khan of the Norwegian Digitalisation Agency.

The pilots will deploy the European Digital Identity Wallet (DIW) in national eID ecosystems operated by Member States.

They will also look at the successful implementation of the revised eIDAS regulatory framework by public and private sector service providers to exchange digital identity credentials across Member States.

The Commission first unveiled plans in September 2020 for the development of trusted digital identities that can be used throughout the EU.

Almost a year later, the EU confirmed it was working on a new digital wallet, secured by biometrics, that would allow EU citizens to verify their ID, access public and private services across the bloc, and store digital documents.

The official launch of the digital ID wallet is scheduled to take place in September 2022. Ahead of its release, the Commission is now calling on Member States to work on a toolbox that would address the technical aspects of the future system. Proposals for the pilots are due on May 17, 2022, the EC call for proposals states.

The new tender comes roughly a week after the publication of the aforementioned call of proposals, which also aims to “accelerate the best use of technologies under the Digital Europe Programme (DIGITAL).”

To shed light on the EU Digital Identity Wallet and its future applications, the trainees of the European Data Protection Supervisor and European Data Protection Board have recently published the first two episodes of a three-part podcast series.

The first episode, in particular, highlights a discussion between Viky Manaila, one of the experts assessing the impact of the revision of the eIDAS Regulation in support of the European Commission, and Isabel Skierka, the program leader for Technology Policy.

The technology experts first introduce the EU DIW and explore the way it works in relation to applicable European legislation (especially GDPR and eIDA), as well as the key risks and benefits in relation to data protection.

They also explore similarities with the Apple wallet as well as the European Commission’s efforts to create competition in the context of the Digital Markets Act proposal.

Article Topics

biometrics  |  data protection  |  digital identity  |  digital wallets  |  eID  |  eIDAS  |  EU Digital Identity Wallet  |  Europe  |  European Commission  |  GDPR  |  mobile app  |  national ID  |  pilot project  |  tender