Estonia Learns from Cybersecurity Crisis to Further Develop E-Services and Expand Digital Identity Program
Despite recent cybersecurity concerns affecting nearly 750,000 ID cards issued in Estonia over the past three years, including thousands of e-resident ID cards, the number of digital identity applications received by the country continues to grow. The crisis presented a huge challenge for the program, but lessons were learned and the government is using this opportunity to further develop e-services.
Lessons Learned from Cybersecurity Crisis
The recent cybersecurity crisis forced Estonia’s government and private companies that provide around 5,000 e-services to think about new and even more sophisticated security arrangements for their services. The vulnerability of ID cards has already led to the update of ID card certificates, which has also forced private companies to implement updates at a fast pace.
Continued Growth and Expansion
However, Korjus believes that the crisis hasn’t frightened off new applicants for e-residency. In fact, the number of applications has significantly increased during recent months, with more than 300 applications received each week. Additionally, the number of companies applying for e-residency has been the highest ever over the past few months.
e-Residency Program Expansion
Estonia’s e-residency program, launched in December 2014, allows individuals to run an EU company online from anywhere in the world. According to a Deloitte analysis, the program has returned €14.4m ($17.6m) to Estonia in its first two years of operation.
- The program is expanding to issue e-resident digital ID cards locally from certified visa application centers in South Korea.
- The goal is to serve 500 e-residents from South Korea who want to expand their businesses into the EU.
- The expansion will also address one of the biggest challenges for e-residency, which is the limited number of locations where e-residents can collect their ID card overseas.
Future Plans
The future of e-residency includes plans to issue documents to Estonian citizens living around the world from visa application centers. This would allow them to obtain their documents more easily.
- Next year, the program expects to have an extra 20,000 e-residents and 2,500 new companies.
- Korjus is already working on a new challenge, which will be unveiled this year - discovering whether Estonia can become the best country for initial coin offerings (ICOs). The plan includes adapting some regulations and building further partnerships with the private sector.
Conclusion
Despite recent cybersecurity concerns, Estonia’s e-residency program continues to grow and expand. The government is using this opportunity to further develop e-services and increase security measures. With plans to expand the program and address challenges such as limited pick-up locations, Estonia is confident that it will continue to be a leader in digital identity and e-government services.