The Porvoo Group

The Porvoo Group is an international cooperative network whose primary goal is to promote a trans-national, interoperable electronic identity, based on PKI technology (Public Key Infrastructure) and electronic ID cards, in order to help ensure secure public and private sector e-transactions in Europe. The Group also promotes the introduction of interoperable certificates and technical specifications, the mutual, cross-border acceptance of authentication mechanisms, as well as cross-border, on-line access to administrative services.

As its name suggests, the Porvoo Group was established in Porvoo, Finland. Following the joint initiative by one of the eEurope Smart Card Charter chairmen and the Director General of the Finnish Population Register Centre, the founding seminar took place at the Haikko Manor in the spring of 2002 during the international conference held in conjunction with the Public Identity Project of the Smart Card Charter operating under the eEurope 2002 programme. The Group consists of governmental representatives from European countries; representatives from the private sector and from the European Commission have also attended the seminars.

The Porvoo Group is a pro-active, European-level electronic identity .interest group., widely recognised as a significant and relevant contributor to informed public dialogue in this area. Amongst its other activities, the Group has issued or initiated the following recommendations:

1. A letter of request sent to the European Commission in order to update the Driving License Directive to allow an electronic identity chip to be included on driving licenses.
2. Has started discussions concerning the legal aspects of electronic identity and identification and authentication functions carrying out a study on the European Cross-Border Authentication Legislative Environment and the need, if any, for the EU to regulate the interoperable European electronic identity. The study recommends using the Directive governing electronic signatures as a common legislative solution.
3. Has recognised the important developments underway in the field Biometrics in Passports and in the future also in ID cards. and has expressed its immediate need from the electronic ID card perspective for an international standard template for fingerprint minutiae. This position has already been communicated to the CEN/ISSS (European Committee for Standardization/ Information Society Standardization System) Biometric Focus Group.

The permanent secretariat coordinates the function of the Group

The three joint-chairpersons of the Porvoo Group are Mr. Tapio Aaltonen, the Director of Certificate Authority Services at the Finnish Population Register Centre; Mr. Jan van Arkel, from the Netherlands, one of the Porvoo Group founders and the former eEurope Smart Card Charter chairman; and the Chairperson of the Organising Committee of the member country hosting the next Porvoo Group seminar.

The Finnish Population Register Centre constitutes the permanent secretariat of the Group. This secretariat manages the communications between seminars and jointly organises them together with the hosting country organisation. The secretariat also handles media relations pertaining to the seminars.

The Porvoo Group meets twice a year

The Porvoo Group's two-day seminars are held every 6 months. The number of participating member countries has steadily increased; at present, about 30 countries have representatives in the Group. In the seminars, there has always been a comprehensive presentation by the hosting country about the situation of the Information Society and the electronic identity in that hosting country. In addition, the participating countries present their country updates; furthermore, the seminars have discussed best practices, presented on-going PKI projects, followed the progress of standardisation and the preparation for the biometric passports, discussed various studies concerning the EU Directive governing electronic signatures, etc.

Additional information is available on the Internet: www.fineid.fi  -> What's going on around the world -> Porvoo Group.

The secretariat of the Porvoo9 seminar