Reden, Interviews

Eröffnungsrede von Staatssekretär Finz im Rahmen des Expertenseminars „Trust in the Net“ am 9.2.2006 in Wien

Good morning ladies and gentlemen, I am very pleased to welcome you here in Vienna to this High Level Seminar. A warm welcome also to Commissioner Reding – who will deliver a speech literally “virtually” and who will be here in person later today - and also to her staff who have organized this important event together with the Austrian Presidency on “Trust in the Net”. Thank you very much also to Ministers Susanna Huovinen and Alun Michael for their active participation and for the undoubtedly fruitful input they will give to the discussion today with their keynote addresses.

“Trust in the net” – the working title of today’s Conference – was an immediate temptation for me to go on the Web and start a little search. After having reflected on the environment that is needed to create trust and confidence and the fast evolution of the information society, “Mozart” also came to mind – In these days in Austria you cannot escape the celebrations of his anniversary! - What would a genius like Mozart have done if he had been a security expert? To be honest - I hadn’t expected any serious results. But surprisingly I found various hits.

To start with a website of a Viennese vendor of concert tickets who underlined the utmost importance of security of data transfer and data management. But not only this – there was also a very simple explanation about the secure connection used for the online booking and the icon indicating the certificate. Very reassuring – at least for a non-expert – was also the information that the credit card data given for the booking will be deleted once the booking has been made. The same for this secure socket layer thing. Even without fully understanding what a secure socket layer or a certificate is – I was nonetheless left with a feeling that I was dealing with a reliable business application which I can T R U S T.

Trust in the Net is a vital issue for the acceptance of electronic services and the further stimulation of electronic commerce. As Secretary of State in the Ministry of Finance I know quite well how important it is to offer secure electronic communications. “FinanceOnline” is one of the most successful eGovernment applications in Austria. User trust in online services - especially in the finance sector - has been very high since the beginning.

In Austria, public administration enjoys a high level of public confidence. It was therefore clear for us that we had to transfer this existing trust to the eGovernment applications. Therefore, “FinanceOnline” was one of the pioneers implementing the “Austrian Citizen Card concept” enabling a common electronic identification and authentication for eGovernment services and the related data protection mechanism. The success of “FinanceOnline” has shown that all the efforts have been worthwhile. The level of acceptance by businesses and citizens is very high. The figures speak for themselves. By making use of the service more than 800,000 Austrians have already saved time and money. Since its inception in 2003, more than 10 million tax returns and applications have been filed electronically via “FinanceOnline”.

My “Mozart – security” search came up with many other hits. By the way – it seems that our genius – Mozart - has returned to us. I found an advertisement that “Current Mozart 1.3.1 was released on July the 16, 2004”. I could continue with the list of odd results. What I want to underline is that all of them are alluding to Mozart’s ingeniousness symbolising the brilliance of security solutions available today. And exactly this is the crucial message: We can only achieve a significant progress in electronic communications if we are able to create the necessary confidence and trust in new media and technologies. All of us – industry, public authorities and academics - have to work together in order to create the necessary environment and fruitful synergies.

In the past security issues have been reduced to the technical level. With the widespread use of the internet, electronic communications and electronic devices security has now gained a wider dimension. For example there is the economic impact. Security can contribute to the Lisbon goal of growth. The more users can trust electronic transactions, the more they will take up the possibility of online banking, eGovernment, eHealth and electronic commerce. Of course – security solutions alone will not be sufficient without taking interoperability into account. Security may enhance trust and confidence in new technologies but without interoperability the acceptance of the services on offer will remain low.

Let me share our experience of introducing a common identification and authentication mechanism – the so called Citizen Card Concept - which I have already mentioned in my introduction. The development of the necessary technical solutions has been financed by the Austrian Federal Chancellery and the Ministry of Finance. By making the fundamental basic components available for free, we have created the financial incentive to implement a secure solution at each level of our federal system. Regions, cities and local communities have taken on the basic components voluntarily. The necessary regulatory environment for eID – definitions, processes, responsibilities - has been created by the eGovernment Act and with which the barriers arising from the paper world have now been eliminated.

We have also established the necessary data protection mechanism which – by law – can also be used by private industry. The same is valid for the electronic identification and authentication solution. Together with the banking sector we have developed the Secure Payment Confirmation System based on the European Payment Standard. Again – that which has been developed for eGovernment purposes can also be adopted for private business purposes.

In a nutshell – I wanted to demonstrate to you that the challenge of convergence not only affects technologies and media but all sectors. Public or private, health, banking, commerce or government. There are no islands any more if we want to achieve greater growth and productivity. Security and trust are vital for the whole digital world. Together with interoperability, they are to be considered cross border issues which can be only fully addressed by creating the necessary cooperation between all stakeholders and a culture of sustainability.

Today you have all received a conference card which carries the basic mechanisms for the Austrian Citizen Card. If you activate the Citizen Card functions, you can access a range of example eServices created for the event, and you can also use the badge after the conference for access to actual eGovernment services in Austria. Potentially you could also have done this if you possess a Finnish, Belgian, Italian or Estonian eID card – the neccessary integration of those national schemes has already been achieved with the Austrian Citizen Card concept – we are waiting only for the European signal to go online.

With the conference eID-badge we want to demonstrate that eID is a valid security tool that can be deployed for various purposes. With the eID-badge we also want to demonstrate that we have to think about interoperability.

One of the essential elements of a secure house is a solid foundation. But foundations alone will not get you a complete house. Trust and confidence are the key which gives you access to the house. Functionality, usability, accessibility, comfort and security will lead to your well-being and determine your desire to stay in the house.

I have shared with you some general considerations about security and how we have to embed them in a broader context. You are the experts gathering together with the objective to consider future strategies, feasible policies and sustainable objectives. As an eGovernment service provider I know that the success of electronic services is very much dependent on the capability to generate trust and confidence in electronic communications and new technologies. As a politician I am aware that we have to find the right balance between different interests whilst always underlining fundamental democratic values and principles.

I wish you good luck for your work today and feel confident that we can make substantial progress in the important goals that we have set ourselves.

Thank you!