Building advanced applications with the Belgian eID

Abstract

The Belgian Electronic Identity Card (eID) was introduced in 2002. The card enables Belgian citizens to digitally prove their identity and to sign electronic documents. Today, only a limited number of citizens really use the card in electronic applications. An important reason is the lack of killer functionality and killer applications.This paper presents two reusable extensions to the Belgian eID technology that opens up new opportunities for application developers. First, a secure and ubiquitously accessible remote storage service is presented. Second, it is shown how the eID card can be used to issue new certificates. The feasibility and reusability of both extensions are validated through the development of several applications in different domains. ‡ SAP Survey: Belgen verdeeld over gebruik van eID op het werk (sept. 2009 by Indigov). lack of essential functionality and, more importantly, real killer applications. Moreover, the use of the current eID card involves a few security and privacy hazards [2,3].A recent survey on the use of the Belgian eID card in corporate environments ‡ suggests one of the main obstacles for using the eID card is the mistrust in the technology. While about 99% of the Belgian citizens possess a Belgian eID card, 56% of the respondents never used it. The most important applications for which the eID was used, were personal eGovernment