In 2022, FranceConnect will once again be available for use as a third-party identity manager for exclusive online services. It will be useful for more businesses.
For the past three years, internet businesses in the private sector have been able to use the identity aggregator FranceConnect, which was created by the DINUM (Interministerial Digital Department). This option was available for a year to 100 private internet services and is still considered experimental. The experiment has been opened to new participants and has been prolonged for an additional year, according to DINUM. You can find the FranceConnect implementation requirements online.
FranceConnect unites identity providers like impots.gouv.fr, ameli.fr, and La Poste Digital Identity into a single service, originally created to simplify online administrative operations. The user can select their verified identity provider from the list of accepted providers (impots.gouv.fr, ameli.fr, La Poste Digital Identity, etc.) and connect to a website using this one service without having to form a new account. Using FranceConnect to identify oneself can be used for thousands of administrative processes.
Such pooled third-party identity managers, which are often offered by GAFAMs, are widely used in the private sector (Facebook or Google account in particular). The difficulty in making FranceConnect available to the private sector is finding a secure, independent replacement for GAFAM that ensures a confirmed identity. In order to evaluate the possibility given by FranceConnect’s opening to the private sector and the perceived additional value for consumers of the experimental online services, a report will be completed at the conclusion of the trial, according to the DINUM.