"ID Austria" Replaces "Digitales Amt"

The obligation to register using biometric data such as fingerprint or facial recognition is eliminated, and the PIN code can be used as a second authentication factor. State Secretary Alexander Pröll (ÖVP) suggested that ID Austria could also be used for age verification on social media.

ID Austria "digital master key in everyday life"

ID Austria allows you to prove your identity to digital applications. So far, there have been more than 3.9 million registrations, and over 500 applications are currently integrated. During the relaunch of the associated app on June 20, the focus was placed on the functions of logging in and signing, said Pröll, who described ID Austria as a "digital master key in everyday life". Open signatures can now be recognized at a glance, and the overview of personal data is better. The new app is easy to understand, secure, and practical for citizens, businesses, and administration. The transition occurs automatically. Push notifications now inform about the expiration of ID Austria, and renewal is possible online. The app also meets the requirements of the eIDAS regulation and can therefore be used legally throughout Europe. The website oesterreich.gv.at has been modernized as the central platform for digital administration, and id-austria.gv.at now offers information about digital identity.

Minimum age control on social media possible via ID Austria

ID Austria is being opened up to the private sector. It can now be more easily integrated into applications, leading to secure and low-barrier login processes. "We are ready as a central key," said Pröll towards the companies. Social media platforms could use ID Austria for the control of a recently much-discussed minimum age, the State Secretary for Digitalization also suggested.

The long-term goal is to establish a "one-stop shop". If someone changes their residence, they should find all services - from searching for a kindergarten place to notifying the post office - in one place, explained Pröll. In the EU comparison, Austria aims to reach the top three in digitalization. The government has set the goal that by 2030 every person in the country will have an ID Austria. To better establish this, Pröll announced a nationwide service tour for the summer with stops in every federal state, where interested parties can apply for ID Austria.

NEOS against real name requirement for control of online platforms

Regarding the regulation of online platforms, the NEOS on Tuesday spoke out against a repeatedly ventilated real name requirement. "Anonymity on the internet is not up for discussion," emphasized the pink club chairman Yannick Shetty in a statement. This is "not a danger, but a cornerstone of liberal internet policy," said Shetty: "Anyone who thinks that in the future you will have to present an ID card to open a Facebook account or register anonymously on a dating platform completely misunderstands what communicative freedom rights are about."

(APA/Red)

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