By Tom Phillips
The Australian government has accredited Eftpos as the first private sector digital identity exchange operator under the country’s Trusted Digital Identity Framework (TDIF), enabling the use of the payments network’s ConnectID solution across a wide range of online transactions that require digital ID verification.
The Eftpos ConnectID solution allows consumers to authenticate their identity by linking to a verified digital ID held by a trusted provider and sharing their personal credentials with merchants, public services, government departments and other organisations.
TDIF accreditation will support “industry adoption of digital identity to drive security and productivity in the digital economy,” Eftpos says.
It will also enable Eftpos to collaborate with the Australian government’s Digital Transformation Agency, “to make it easier for more Australians to access both private and government services securely online”.
“TDIF accreditation is a big step forward for Eftpos and industry to help bring the benefits of digital identity to more sectors of the economy,” Eftpos CEO Stephen Benton adds.
“It is a significant and tangible milestone in the rollout of Australia’s digital identity ecosystem and comes after months of rigorous assurance evaluations and privacy and security testing.
“With ConnectID, Eftpos drew on its experience operating the national Eftpos network in the development of an exchange to make it easier for Australians to share, store and receive trusted personal identity information online, giving them more confidence and control.”
Assurance evaluations
In addition to digital identity exchange operators, the Australian TDIF sets out standards, rules and guidelines for identity, credential and attribute providers as well.
“Organisations and government agencies can apply for TDIF accreditation and undergo a series of assurance evaluations for their digital identity service,” the Australian government explains.
“To become a TDIF accredited provider, applicants are required to demonstrate how their digital identity service meets requirements for accessibility and usability, privacy protection, security and fraud control, risk management, technical integrity and more.”
To date only digital identity services provided by public sector organisations such as myGovID and Australia Post’s Digital iD have received official TDIF accreditation. Eftpos launched ConnectID and applied for TDIF accreditation in June.
