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VERIMI, the new European identity and data platform, with its central and convenient VERIMI log-in (single sign-on) is now available in the German market, as a basic product (Minimum Viable Product – MVP). The launch is following a phased approach: in the first phase, the VERIMI system platform has gone live, with VERIMI shareholders Deutsche Bank and Bundesdruckerei the first organizations to make the green VERIMI button available for their online customers. In a second phase over the coming weeks, the platform will expand to connect additional partners as well as offer new platform features.
“The go-live of the platform is an important milestone for VERIMI and for the digital economy in Europe,” Donata Hopfen, CEO of VERIMI, explains. “We are now live with our VERIMI system, and we will gradually connect further shareholders and application partners in the coming weeks and months. It was important for us to go live with the platform under
real conditions.” Weltsparen, Compaio and Docyet are the first application partners to connect to VERIMI. The three start-ups have been actively accompanying the development of the platform from the outset. The aim is to quickly equip the platform with new product features and to gradually expand its reach.
In addition to single sign-on, the video ident process is part of the product right from the start. Users can legitimate their identity card or passport to authenticate themselves directly online. Additional functions are gradually being added, such as the qualified electronic signature according to eIDAS, payment services, uploading and archiving of sensitive documents and functionalities for personal documents. These capabilities mean that VERIMI also enables eGovernment functions, for example secure identification and authentication with citizen portals.
Stefan Hofschen, Chairman of the Executive Board of Bundesdruckerei GmbH commented, “As a leading provider of trusted services, Bundesdruckerei supports the successful launch and use of the VERIMI platform. The current cases of data abuse as well as the lack of user control over their personal data show how important a trustworthy identification platform is. With VERIMI, Internet users can easily and securely identify and authenticate themselves with a wide variety of online applications – and in future also with the German identity card”.
Users retain full control over their personal data with VERIMI
VERIMI is designed as a central and cross-industry platform. Users register once and can then use the digital services and products of the connected partners. VERIMI also offers users the simple option of transferring customer data already stored on a partner’s platform. The main advantage of VERIMI is that users retain full control over their own data. Using settings on the platform, they can decide for themselves which personal data they want to share with which partner. Approvals once granted can be revoked at any time. VERIMI is designed as a central platform in the first release but will be converted to a decentralized model with the appropriate degree of mature technologies.
Markus Pertlwieser, Chief Digital Officer (CDO) for Private and Commercial Clients of Deutsche Bank said, “Only the responsible handling of customer data opens the door to digital business models in the long term. VERIMI is now moving forward as an open platform and we invite all German and European companies to join us.”
With the integration of VERIMI, partner companies benefit from a secure and simple way of addressing and retaining customers digitally in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). VERIMI also delivers secure identities to connected partners, reducing transaction breakups and payment defaults. In addition, VERIMI is continuously acquiring
new partners and customers, thereby increasing the platform’s reach and relevance. VERIMI is developed as a platform open for all industries and branches, which makes it easy for companies to integrate the green VERIMI buttons comfortably into existing online offers.
Data protection on the highest level
VERIMI is an open platform that can be integrated into websites and apps by application partners based using standard protocols such as OAuth and OpenID Connect. The platform will support all four Levels of Authentication (LoA 1-4) according to the ISO standard, starting with simple log-in and confirmation of a second factor (e.g. numerical code via SMS). The VERIMI platform architecture also ensures that customer data is protected on several levels. For example, all user accounts as well as the stored data in the accounts are individually encrypted. This ensures that user data is secure even in the event of unauthorised access to the systems. VERIMI meets the high data protection and security requirements of the European Union, including the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) which will enter into force in May 2018.
Stefan Hofschen, Chairman of the Executive Board of Bundesdruckerei GmbH commented, “As a leading provider of trusted services, Bundesdruckerei supports the successful launch and use of the VERIMI platform. The current cases of data abuse as well as the lack of user control over their personal data show how important a trustworthy identification platform is. With VERIMI, Internet users can easily and securely identify and authenticate themselves with a wide variety of online applications – and in future also with the German identity card”.