A wide range of key societal functions are dependent now on ICT systems for electronic identification (eID). Using eID technology, citizens of and residents in Norway can access a range of private and public services, access their digital health data, report to tax authorities, verify payments, bid on real estate, sign credit agreements, register a divorce and conduct many other transactions. Because of this foundational role in modern digital societies, eID systems pose societal security concerns regarding criminal activity, including financial fraud, money laundering, corruption and terrorism.
About the project
In this project, we will study how law and technology can work together to detect and reduce vulnerabilities linked to the use and misuse of eID systems. The project will examine the technical features of eID systems in Norway and Estonia, and their interaction with applicable national and European Union (EU) legal frameworks. While Norway and Estonia are frontrunners in digitalisation, Norway reportedly experiences the highest level of online fraud and identity theft in Europe while such problems are rare in Estonia.
As part of the project, a legal aid clinic will be established in Norway for individuals experiencing legal challenges related to use or misuse of eID. This clinic will facilitate the collection of aggregated and case-specific data and provide new insights into how the legal system deals with legal issues related to eID systems, including ongoing access to eID and the management and recovery of claims following eiD misuse.
The project will be implemented by a multidisciplinary team of scholars, in collaboration with a range of non-academic partners (public and private).
The project is expected to have a high impact among both scholars and policymakers seeking to understand eID systems and to contribute to policy and technical development in ways that take human rights, ethics and societal needs into account, thereby reducing societal risk.
The projects main pages is in Norwegian.