Swiss Post to roll out secure digital ID product

Swiss Post and the country’s government will roll out ‘SuisseID’, a secure digital ID productenabling public authorities, companies and consumers to do business over the internet on a legally

certain basis from May onwards.

With SuisseID, the Swiss Confederation is launching the country’s first standardised productfor secure electronic proof of identity. It will provide public authorities, companies and privateindividuals with fast access to a secure digital identity, and provide a simple and secure way forthem to access online services and conclude transactions with each other electronically.

Swiss Post will begin its nationwide rollout of SuisseID in May. The government will besubsidising part of the purchase price in 2010.

Thanks to its SwissStick, Swiss Post already boasts the simplest solution on the market forintegrating digital identities into useful applications. At the time the new product is launched,the SwissStick will be available with Suisse ID. Applications for signing documents and sendingthem as electronic registered mail with confirmation of mailing and receipt will also be available.

The Federal Council intends to inject CHF 25 million into this third project as part of itseconomic stimulus package for the development of the electronic economic area. CHF 17 million hasbeen set aside for the discounted first release of SuisseID for natural persons in a bid by theConfederation to encourage more people to perform their business transactions electronically.

As an established provider of digital identities, Swiss Post will offer SuisseID nationwidein accordance with the technical requirements of the Confederation. Natural persons will be able toorder SuisseID electronically as of May. The customer can perform the required personalidentification procedure at any post office.

Swiss Post will be offering its SuisseID in the form of a regular chip card, a mobile key forsecure digital communication, or as an integrated solution. The chip can be inserted into a secureUSB stick, which has various uses for SuisseID. Applications stored on the stick will enable usersto sign documents electronically with legally binding signatures and send them electronically inencrypted form via registered mail.

In addition to the basic equipment, other individual applications can also be integrated,providing users of Abacus or Crealogix business software solutions with correctly configured directaccess to Swiss Post services. Users of the SwissStick with integrated SuisseID will also benefitfrom greatly simplified login processes for various services. As such, it will also be possible togain simplified access to electronic postal services. Updates for the SwissStick applications willbe made available continuously via the Internet.

The SwissStick can be inserted as a mobile device into any PC or laptop. On removing theSwissStick from the USB port, no data traces remain on the devices.

SuisseID from Swiss Post is aimed primarily at business customers. The solution also targetsprivate individuals who require a digital identity online and wish to communicate securely usingthis identity.