DIGITAL residents of Estonia have had their ID cards frozen due to a massive security flaw. The digital cards allowed both Estonian citizens and thousands of people from overseas who have registered as e-residents to do things like access bank accounts or medical records, set up a company or vote online.
鈥淚t was not a flaw of the Estonian ID card alone, but also included computer systems around the world鈥�
In September, security researchers discovered a bug in the system that might allow identify theft. Estonia hasn鈥檛 yet released full details of the flaw, but Kaspar Korjus, the managing director of the government鈥檚 e-residency programme, has said it is related to the cards鈥� chip.
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鈥淚t was not a flaw of the Estonian ID card alone, but also included cards and computer systems around the world that use the chips by the same producer,鈥� he wrote in a blog post. 鈥淭his brought the safety flaw to the attention of international cybercrime networks which had significant means to take advantage of the situation.鈥�
As a result, Estonia has suspended nearly all ID cards issued in the past three years, until users update to a new security certificate. Adding to the problem, too many e-residents are trying to update their IDs at once, causing systems to crash. Despite the bug being known for two months, Estonian prime minister J眉ri Ratas has said there have been no reported instances of ID theft.
This article appeared in print under the headline 鈥淢istaken identity鈥�
