Six Swedish banks are collaborating with IBM on the establishment of a national digital ID centre where consumers and public and private sector bodies will be able to access electronic credentials for trading online.
The six banks that make up The Swedish Banks' ID Consortium (Bankernas ID-konsortium) have contracted with IBM for the supply of the technical services needed to establish a certificate authority for issuing and managing digital certificates. The initiative is a collaborative project between Danske Bank (in Sweden), ForeningsSparbanken, Handelsbanken, IKANO Banken, SEB and SkandiaBanken.
The Bankernas ID-Konsortium will begin issuing digital certificates to private individuals in 2002. Customers will be able to use their encrypted private keys to access personal information online and conduct secure authenticated transactions with other certificate holders.
The banks will compete with each other to sell ID services to public bodies and private companies wishing to secure electronic communication with certificated consumers.
"We believe that our service will contribute to better Internet security and hence to increased use of the Net," says Hakan Nyberg, chairman of the consortium.