Logius releases app to activate DigiD app on phones without NFC

Logius has released an app with which people with a smartphone without an NFC can still use the DigiD app to log in to government organizations, among others. NFC is needed to check a passport, driver’s license or ID card.

The app is called CheckID and has been released in the Google Play Store and Apple App Store. With the app, someone who does have a smartphone with NFC can scan a passport, driver’s license or ID card of the owner of the phone without NFC, Logius explains. The phone with NFC then establishes a secure connection with the phone without NFC to pass on data about the check.

The phone with NFC only serves as a card reader, Logius emphasizes. Logging in to DigiD is not necessary. After the one-time check, scanning an ID is no longer necessary on that phone. In particular, many cheaper models do not have an NFC on board, so that the manufacturers save the costs of installing them. Almost all midrange and high-end smartphones of recent years have NFC.

The DigiD app offers, partly due to the scan of an identity document, a higher security than logging in with only a username and password. This is necessary for access to medical data, for example. Scanning IDs with the DigiD app has been possible since the end of 2017.