E-government study: the digital ID card takes a leap forward

13.5 years after the introduction of the electronic ID card with RFID memory chip , the associated electronic identity (eID) is slowly gaining more acceptance. In principle, 39 percent of German citizens aged 16 and over can use this online ID card, i.e. have set their own PIN for it. That is nine percentage points more than in 2023. One fifth of the population (22%) have already used the eID function. This is anincrease of around eight percentage points compared to the previous year.This is the first time in the history of the online ID card that there has been a significant upturn in eID usage.

The figures come from the E-Government Monitor 2024, which is compiled by the government and business initiative D21 together with the Technical University of Munich. For this year's edition of the representative study , the market research institute Kantar surveyed 8108 online users in Germany in May. The results on state digital identities, which are to be published on Wednesday, are a first partial excerpt of the overall 2024 analysis. The complete study will be published on October 8.

According to the analysis, growth rates in the willingness to use the eID in principle are particularly high among the youngest and oldest generations covered. This rate has risen by 15 percentage points to 56% among those aged up to 30, and by twelve points to 25% among those born before 1945. One of the main reasons for not using online applications is still that respondents do not see any benefit or advantage for themselves (22%), but this is five percentage points less than in 2023. "It's too complicated for me" is also still said by 22%. Only 15% are still unaware of any possible applications, a decline of three percentage points. At least the one-off payment for students linkedto the BundID and the eID, as well as the Kulturpass, are likely to have brought the online ID card more into the focus of potential users.

Fewer citizens trust the online ID card

40 percent of eID users belong to Generation Z, which was born between 1995 and 2010. 32 percent have a high level of formal education, 28 percent are men and 15 percent are women. The regional differences are large: in the city states, the usage rate is between 29 and 32 percent, with Berlin at the top, while Saxony comes in last with only 16 percent. At 23 percent, less than a quarter of citizens with an ID card are aware of the option to scan the eID using a smartphone with NFC support (Smart eID). At 30 percent, ignorance of possible applications is still the most important reason for not using it, but that is eight percentage points less than in the previous year. On the other hand, twelve percent have no confidence in the online ID card - an increase of four points.

37% already use a wallet solution on their cell phone, which will be mandatory in future under the EUid Regulation. That is nine percentage points more than in 2023. 55% would like to be able to identify themselves anywhere with their ID on their cell phone in the future. However, 21% are not enthusiastic about this. 24% state that the reason for discontinuing individual online services of the digital town hall is that they should have been able to identify themselves electronically but did not have the opportunity to do so. 52 percent state that the biggest barrier to using e-government is that they have to prove their identity digitally. Many people are probably unaware that the BundID is to be renamed DeutschlandID : So far, only 19 percent of the population know the term for the administration's online account. The usage rate is 15 percent - an increase of eight percentage points.

20 euros for PIN reset letter

For Christiane Fritsch, expert for digital leadership at ING Germany and Vice President of D21, the new statistics give "reason for hope". She was surprised that the options for using the eID, for example for the electronic patient card, for checking the points register in Flensburg or for customer legitimation, had not yet spread widely. However, it does not help that the German government has abolished the free PIN reset service. As co-editor of the report, Helmut Krcmar from TU Berlin reminded us: "Forgetfulness is a human trait." However, if the online ID serves as a gateway for attractive applications, citizens could also be willing to pay to maintain online capability. In general, the executive branch would have to "communicate vigorously" to continue surfing the emerging wave.

The 14 euros per renewed PIN transmission was too expensive, replied Ernst Bürger, Head of the Digital Administration Department at the Federal Ministry of the Interior. The department is currently in the process of implementing a payment function. The price for this is likely to be around 20 euros. Security experts attach great importance to postal delivery, even if he personally would like to see a purely digital version. The civil servant can also imagine moving the eID to the cloud . For the planned advertising campaign, the final budget negotiations must be awaited, as the red pencil has so far had to be applied here.

(olb)