The European Union is preparing to launch the EU digital wallet by 2024. The wallet will allow residents to store digital identification documents, like driver’s licenses and national IDs.
The EU’s Committee on Industry, Research, and Energy member Romana Jerkovic said that, for the bloc to stick to the schedule, it plans to publish specifications and standards before 2023.
“The legislative process could be completed by next spring, setting the stage for the wallet to go live in 2024,” Jerkovic said. “Under the plan, EU member states will have 12 months to issue their wallets once the regulation is adopted.”
The initiative has been criticized by digital rights groups, some tech companies, and industry groups. The pushback could result in the delay of the launch.
Browser providers Mozilla and Google said that the new trust certificates would be less secure compared to current ones and also challenging to implement within the deadline. Other companies have said that the digital wallet would be expensive to integrate with their systems.
Earlier this year, there was a controversy about the use of unique identifiers as they could be used for tracking purposes, some noting that they would be illegal in countries like Germany, Austria, and the Netherlands.
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