eAusweise (eID)
The eAusweise (eID) app enables users to present their identity documents online. It was created by the Federal Computing Centre (Bundesrechenzentrum, BRZ) and is linked to the Digitales Amt (Digital Office) app and ID Austria. It is also connected to the user's identity. This app therefore represents an important step in the further development of e-government and mobile government. At present, anyone with an Austrian credit card-type driving licence can use the eAusweise app to present their digital driving licence when asked to do so and officials can check it in a digital process with no need for an active Internet connection. Your driving licence details can be downloaded from the driving licence register using the QR code that is generated. This protects your digital driving licence from forgery.
In the future, further developments of electronic ID will follow, for example, digital motor vehicle registration certificates; however, there are no plans to abolish physical forms of ID.
How does the eAusweise app work?
The eAusweise (eID) app can be downloaded from the Apple App Store or the Google Play Store.
To use it, you have to have the Digitales Amt app installed, because it is only there that the full version of ID Austria is saved and can be used to confirm your identity using your sector-specific personal identifier in the driving licence register. You must also have biometric authentication activated on your smartphone and a credit card-type driving licence.
If you meet these requirements and accept the T&Cs, then with a few clicks your driving licence will be downloaded from the register into the app. This digital driving licence is valid for three months, after which you have to reapply for it using the app. Once it is activated, you can choose between three functions:
- "Traffic police are carrying out a spot check on me": If you click on this, a QR code for your digital driving licence is generated, which the police officer can check using the MPK app (Mobile Police Communication). If you have committed a traffic offence, your driving licence may be removed and an entry made in the register accordingly. A special app is available to enable representatives of the public security service or road safety officers to check your ID online.
- "I want to present my ID data": If you click on this, a QR code for your saved ID is generated which can be checked directly in the app by any private individual, provided they have the eAusweis Check app.
- "I want to check some ID data": Here, the saved ID of another person can be checked in off-line mode, i.e. by using Bluetooth and without the check being recorded by the Federal Computing Centre or Federal Ministry of Finance.
Confirming identity at private enterprises or abroad
The option exists to identify yourself at clubs or other private enterprises using your digital driving licence. However, organisations decide for themselves whether they accept the electronic version of an ID document or insist on checking a physical document.
So far, the digital driving licence is only valid in Austria, because the relevant legal position in other countries has not yet been clarified. However, the EU Commission already has a concept for an electronic driving licence that would be valid throughout the EU.
Conditions for the digital driving licence and data protection
To use a digital driving licence, you must have a credit card-type driving licence, because a valid photo was saved in the driving licence register when it was issued.
At present, you need biometric authentication to login. This is to protect sensitive data. No biometric data, such as fingerprints or facial features, are saved in a register for authentication purposes, but instead the biometric authentication in your operating system is used.
The digital vehicle registration certificate
The prerequisite for using the digital vehicle registration certificate is that the registration was issued in Austria. It can be used together with the digital driving licence as part of a traffic check or independently of it. The digital vehicle registration certificate can also be used in the context of registration pools. As part of a future extension, it will be possible to pass on the digital vehicle registration certificate to other persons.
Proof of age
The online proof of age can be used within Austria to demonstrate that you are of the required age. For maximum data protection, only your photograph, the date when it was last updated and the information about whether you have reached the required age are displayed. Your name and date of birth remain anonymous.
The "Verify age" function generates a QR code. The person checking your age uses their app to select which kind of age verification applies and scans the QR code. They confirm their selection and then the data is transmitted.
