OTSPI — Open Trusted Service Provider Initiative

Manifesto

For a free and open digital identity

European digital identity is entering everyday life. The choices made today will determine, for decades, who controls it, who can build on it and on what terms. We, the signatories, affirm ten principles to keep it a digital commons.

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  1. Digital identity is a right, not a product

    Proving who you are, or one of your attributes, is a condition for accessing rights, public services and economic life. This ability cannot depend on a subscription, on a single intermediary, or on a business model built on exploiting personal data.

  2. The individual stays in control

    Everyone decides what they disclose, to whom and for what purpose. Selective disclosure, data minimisation and the absence of tracking across uses are design requirements, not options.

  3. Going digital remains a choice

    Using a digital identity wallet remains voluntary. Nobody should lose access to a right or a service for lack of equipment, skills or willingness to use it. The tools are accessible to people with disabilities.

  4. Open and interoperable standards

    Identity and trust protocols, formats and profiles are public, documented and freely implementable. No proprietary interface should condition access to a service or prevent switching providers.

  5. Open, auditable and free code

    Software that handles people's identity and legally binding evidence is published under a free, copyleft licence, so that anyone can examine, verify and improve it, and so that these improvements remain shared.

  6. Trust building blocks are commons

    Time-stamping, seals, signatures, validation and attestations make up the infrastructure of digital evidence. They must be available with no entry fee, through standard interfaces, to all actors on the same terms.

  7. Freedom to do business and to innovate

    A craftsperson, an association, a local authority or a start-up must be able to build trusted digital services without paying a rent on every piece of evidence. Access to trust building blocks cannot be reserved for the best-resourced organisations.

  8. Governance protected from capture

    Public-interest identity and trust infrastructures are governed in a non-profit, transparent way, with segregated duties. Their assets, their keys and their purpose are protected against any appropriation, takeover or diversion.

  9. Verifiable security

    Trust cannot be decreed: it has to be demonstrated. Published certification policies, published audits, transparency logs and documented procedures allow anyone to check the commitments made.

  10. Sovereignty through reversibility

    Data and infrastructures fall under European law and are hosted within the Union. No technical or contractual dependency should prevent taking back control or changing operator.

By signing this manifesto, we commit to upholding these principles in our technical choices, our purchasing, our contributions and our public positions, and to supporting the initiatives that put them into practice.

Sign

Add your signature

Both individuals and organisations can sign. Signatures are collected through a form hosted by the French non-profit Framasoft (Framaforms, free software, hosted in France). The form is in French: “Prénom” is your first name, “Nom” your last name, “Adresse e-mail” your e-mail address, “Fonction” your position and “Organisation” your organisation.

  • Your first and last name, and if you wish your position and organisation, are only published with your explicit consent (“Publication” box).
  • Your e-mail address is never published; it is only used to verify a signature if in doubt and, if you ask for it (“Suites” box), to keep you informed.
  • The public list is updated regularly after moderation. You can withdraw your signature at any time by writing to contact@otspi.org.
Sign the manifesto on Framaforms

Get others to sign

A manifesto lives through those who pass it on

Once you have signed, the most useful thing is to spread it: to your colleagues, your organisation and your networks.

Signatories

They support the manifesto

1 signature, published with the author's consent.

  • Philippe VienneTelecommunications Engineer, INSA Lyon