NemID Paving the Way for Increased Digitalisation in Denmark
Today, Science Minister Charlotte Sahl-Madsen is launching NemID, the new digital signature that will give Danes a common entry to public and private digital self-service solutions.
With NemID ("EasyID"), citizens will have easy and secure access to a variety of self-service solutions on the network. From 1 July 2010, both public digital services, netbanks and a great number of private solutions may be accessed using NemID. In addition to banking, private solutions include areas such as estate agents, insurance companies and pension funds. Other examples are HK (Union of Commercial and Clerical Employees in Denmark) and Klasselotteriet (Danish State Lottery).
– We should encourage citizens to opt for the digital channels. But they will only do so if it is secure and easy to use. We can do this with NemID, says Science Minister Charlotte Sahl-Madsen, who has had the opportunity herself to test NemID in June this year.
– NemID is closely bound up with the Government's visions in the area of digitalisation. Our goal is that all Danes should have access to at least 100 Mbit/s high-speed broadband by 2020. But things are connected. High-speed broadband is not worth anything without good digital services. And digital services are not worth anything if the citizens cannot figure out how to use them. NemID offers an easy and secure way in which such digital service can be accessed, even by weak IT users.
Over the next six months, about 3 million Danes will get ID via their netbank.
– I am sure that the widespread use of NemID will stimulate the market to develop new relevant digital self-service solutions. In this way, NemID will contribute to continued efficiency and quality improvement of the public service and to growth in the private sector, says Charlotte Sahl-Madsen.
NemID has come into being via a unique collaboration between the government, local authorities, regions and the financial sector, and the solution employs DanID, a subsidiary under the PBS Group, as its supplier.
In developing NemID, the focus has been kept on usability, mobility and security, and in cooperation with the Danish Institute for the Blind a special solution has been developed for the blind and partially sighted.
From today, NemID can be ordered on www.nemid.nu and in the citizen service centres and tax centres that offer NemID. Furthermore, from 1 July, banks will begin sending NemID to their netbank users, and before the end of 2010 all netbank users will have received a NemID via their bank.
For comments by Science Minister Charlotte Sahl-Madsen, please contact the Ministry's press officer, Charlotte Holst Hansen, tel. +45 22 11 02 00, .
For further questions, please contact Centre Director Palle H. Sørensen, Centre for Digital Signature, National IT and Telecom Agency, tel. +45 41 29 17 58, .
