First Estonian ID cards issued

  • 2002-01-31
  • Aleksei Gunter
TALLINN - About 200 prominent citizens of Estonia, mainly politicians and businesspeople, are the privileged first recipients of the country's first ID cards.

President Arnold Ruutel and his predecessor, Lennart Meri, along with their spouses, received their cards on Jan. 28. Other Estonians, who applied for the card in December, have to wait until Jan. 31.

In a speech after receiving his ID card, Meri called it "a key to the future."

The new identification document is the size of a credit card with a photo, the signature of the holder and a microchip that contains personal information that can be extended or changed.

The card gives its holder a digital signature and is a hi-tech alternative to the Estonian passport within the country.

At the moment the card's electronic chip contains only the information that is printed on the card itself. The card has nine visible security marks, including several holograms.

Several large companies participating in "Look at the World," an IT development project started last year to boost Estonian information technology, are already offering special services for ID card holders.For example, Eesti Uhispank's online bank can accept an ID card instead of the regular three-level password system, saving users' time online.

According to Evelin Pull, spokeswoman for Eesti Uhispank, in the near future all the bank's private banking offices will be equipped with ID-card reading devices.

Eventually the card will serve as a valid form of identification for all transactions.

"At the moment we do not accept the card as a valid ID. People still have to use a passport or driver's license," she said.

Telecommunication giant Eesti Telefon will also utilize the ID cards. Customers who hold one will be able to use it in place of passwords.

The ID cards, developed by the Swiss company Trub AG, are being made in Tallinn by Trub Baltic Ltd., in the cellars of Estonia's banking giant Hansapank.

People can also use their cards in the public sector to find out what the state knows about them. The governmental portal "X-tee" displays what sort of data about individuals is stored on governmental databases. This includes participation in companies and non-commercial organizations as well as personal information.