New ability to identify yourself on a government website
January 2023 – You no longer have to queue at a counter for government affairs either. Most federal and regional authorities have convenient websites where - provided you are correctly identified - you can do all your government business. But how do you actually identify yourself to the government?
Four options
If you want to conduct your business on an official government website, you must be able to correctly identify yourself. A type example of such an official platform is eBox, your digital mailbox for government documents. When you go on eBox, you need to identify yourself. There are four ways to do this.
The first possibility is with your eID card. You then need a card reader (and the software for it on your PC) and your PIN.
The second way to identify yourself is with a token. This is a code you receive the moment you log in. You enter your user ID and password and shortly afterwards you will receive a code via SMS, e-mail, etc. (depending on what you indicated when you registered). You confirm with this code and thus gain access to - in our example - your eBox.
The third way is with a user-id and a password, as you also have to log in on some commercial websites, but this way is not so common in public services.
And finally, there is a double authentication option via smartphone.
With smartphone - option 1
If you regularly go on official websites, you definitely know itsme®.
Itsme® works broadly as follows:
You install the app on your smartphone.
You link your identity to your phone number via your eID or bank card.
When you log in, you specify the phone number on which you can identify yourself.
On the device with that number, you can then enter your five-digit code.
Itsme® has been around since 2017 and has since become widespread as the key for digital public services. But private companies that want to be sure with whom they are entering into a contract (think banks) can also request confirmation of your identity via this application.
With smartphone - option 2
Since 8 November, you can install a new digital authentication key for your smartphone to log in to government applications: myID.be®. The application was developed by a private company and has since been recognised by the FPS Policy and Support (BOSA).
myID.be® works slightly differently from itsme®:
You install the app and open the website www.myID.be.
Using your eID (with card reader), you link your identity to the QR code that appears on myID.be®, after which you scan this QR code with the app on your smartphone. Your identity is now linked to your smartphone (i.e. not to the phone number).
To open secure pages, use the app to scan the QR code that appears on the relevant page and confirm your identity on the smartphone with your code (5 digits).
As a business owner, you can also install both applications on your website, although for purely commercial transactions, a customer registration with the installation of one or more payment applications is usually sufficient.
