On May 20, 2024, eIDAS 2.0 came into force, ten years after the publication of the original eIDAS Regulation (Regulation (EU) No. 910/2014 on electronic identification and trust services for electronic transactions in the internal market). The amendment (Regulation (EU) 2024/1183) builds on the existing version of the legislation and aims to make digital transactions in Europe even more secure and efficient.
Changes due to eIDAS 2.0
eIDAS 2.0 lays down binding rules for electronic identification and trust services and extends the existing EU regulation. A core element is the introduction of the European Digital Identity Wallet (EUDI Wallet). This digital wallet offers private individuals as well as companies and organizations a secure way to identify themselves online and offline and to manage digital evidence such as driver's licenses or training certificates. The aim is for 80% of EU citizens to use the EUDI Wallet by 2030.
Further efforts of eIDAS 2.0:
- Stricter security and data protection requirements
- Improved interoperability between national identification systems
- Expansion of trusted services such as electronic seals and time stamps
- Broadening of use cases in everyday life
- Strengthening the (qualified) signature
Opportunities and challenges
The improvements of eIDAS 2.0 offer the opportunity to strengthen trust in electronic transactions, increase user-friendliness and simplify the cross-border use of digital services. However, there are still challenges in its application. For example, the large number of different certificates and trust services leads to a broad distribution of liability. In addition, the lack of uniform standards regarding signature formats and service level agreements (SLAs) as well as long-term verifiability are hurdles that still need to be overcome.
Effects on contract management
eIDAS 2.0 affects, among other things, the handling of electronic signatures in contract processing. Digital signatures must meet the highest security standards and be user-friendly at the same time. Fabasoft Contracts already implements these requirements through the system's own advanced electronic signature and the seamless integration of a qualified electronic signature in accordance with eIDAS. Therefore Fabasoft works together with the Austrian trust service provider primesign Instead of sending contracts to the signing partners by insecure e-mail, those responsible are able to sign documents digitally without the documents leaving the secure cloud. This enables a seamless and secure signature process for all internal and external parties.
Conclusion
The eIDAS 2.0 regulation marks an important step towards secure digital transactions in Europe. Electronic signatures in accordance with eIDAS offer numerous advantages, especially for contract management, from increased data security to optimized processes. Companies that adopt the new standards at an early stage benefit from more efficient processing and can thus future-proof their contract processes.
The changes that eIDAS 2.0 brings in detail are explained by Dr. Thomas Rössler, Managing Director of PrimeSign GmbH, in our webinar (only available in German): eIDAS 2.0 | Fabasoft Contracts
