On 3rd of November, the Council of Ministers approved a resolution that establishes the ECEE - Entidade de Certificação Electrónica do Estado - Infra-Estrutura de Chaves Públicas (State’s Electronic Certification Body - Public Key Infrastructure). The purpose is to ensure the unity of digital authentication systems in the electronic relationships of natural or legal persons with the State and between public bodies.
The ECEE shall operate independently of the public keys infrastructure, private or foreign, but shall allow the necessary interoperability with infrastructures that satisfy the necessary authentication precision requirements, namely within the scope of the European Union countries.
A work group has been appointed to monitor the setting-up process of this body, with has been assigned technical counselling functions, under the powers of the Secretary of State for the Presidency of the Council of Ministers, and comprises representatives of ANACOM and several other entities, such as the UCMA - Unidade de Coordenação da Modernização Administrativa (Administrative Modernization Co-ordination Unit), the UMIC - Agência para a Sociedade do Conhecimento (Agency for Knowledge Society), the GNS - Gabinete Nacional de Segurança (National Security Office), the FCCN - Fundação para a Computação Científica Nacional (National Scientific Computing Foundation), the IT - Instituto de Telecomunicações (Telecommunications Institute), the CEGER - Centro de Gestão da Rede Informática do Governo (Government Network Management Centre), the ITIJ - Instituto das Tecnologias da Informação na Justiça (Institute for Computing Technologies on Justice), and the Centro de Instalação da Rede Nacional de Segurança Interna (National Internal Security Network Deployment Centre). This work group has been set a 90-day mandate, which may be extended up to a 60-day period of time, for the fulfilment of objectives provided for in the resolution.
The establishment of the ECCE was preceded by the preparation of a study carried out by UMIC, jointly with ANACOM, FCCN and GNS, which consisted in the analysis of public key infrastructures of other States, the assessment of the need to create such a system for the Portuguese State and the proposal of recommendations for the setting up thereof.
Consult:
- Resolution of the Council of Ministers no. 171/2005, of 3 of November https://www.anacom.pt/render.jsp?contentId=979362
Related information on ANACOM's website:
- Information society services https://www.anacom.pt/render.jsp?categoryId=333330
