Federal Council makes new attempt in parliament for e-ID
Published: Thursday, Mar 14th 2024, 05:50
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On Thursday, the Swiss parliament will begin discussing a new bill to create an electronic proof of identity (e-ID) in Switzerland. This comes three years after the people clearly rejected such a proposal at the ballot box. This time, the Federal Council is proposing a state solution.
The National Council is the first to approve the draft federal law on electronic proof of identity and other electronic evidence. As the Federal Council explained in November when presenting the legislative project, the e-ID is to be offered from 2026.
The use of the E-ID should be voluntary and free of charge and the E-ID should be used both on the Internet and in everyday life. For example, when ordering an extract from the criminal record electronically or as proof of age when buying alcohol in a store.
All federal services for which the e-ID can be used should continue to be offered in the same way. At the same time, all Swiss authorities must accept the e-ID as valid proof of identity, provided they allow electronic proof of identity in principle.
Security concerns were the decisive factor in the people's rejection of the first e-ID Act in 2021, according to follow-up polls. The federal government has taken this into account, said Federal Councillor Elisabeth Baume-Schneider in November when presenting the bill. Private individuals would no longer have a role in the new bill.
The Confederation will be responsible for issuing the E-ID and providing the infrastructure required for its operation.
Commission praises proposal
In February, the National Council's preliminary consultation committee clearly approved the draft law by 21 votes to 0 with three abstentions. It wrote that the new draft differs "significantly" from the draft that failed in 2021.
E-ID holders would have the greatest possible control over their data. Data protection is guaranteed both by the system itself and by minimizing the necessary data flows and decentralized data storage.
According to the Federal Council, this data is stored on the user's smartphone.
However, the National Council's pre-advisory committee is proposing a number of changes to the draft in order to further increase the protection of personal data and emphasize the role of the federal government. For example, the committee wants to make it possible to identify age anonymously.
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