By 
Bulgaria recently introduced new biometric ID cards, but the rollout has hit a snag as some banks have not prepared to process them. Over the past few weeks, citizens have found that certain bank branches lack the necessary card readers to read these new IDs.
As a result, many Bulgarians have been turned away when attempting to perform basic banking transactions and told to return in a few days. The news outlet Sega reported these issues, which were gathered from social media complaints. The Association of Banks in Bulgaria (ABB) acknowledged the problem, stating that it was limited to banks with card reader issues.
“These issues were promptly addressed upon identification,” stated the association. “In cases of reader malfunctions, banks resort to manual verification processes to prevent inconvenience for customers.”
The new biometric IDs, which contain fingerprint and facial data, were introduced on June 17th. Additionally, the government plans to implement an electronic identity (eID) for accessing government services and systems.
However, there may be complications in this area as well. e-Government Minister Valentin Mundrov noted that the development of the eID mobile app has been halted, despite the completion of a prototype. The app is intended to provide citizens with access to government services.
Mundrov also criticized the Ministry of Internal Affairs for excluding his department from overseeing the production of the new biometric ID cards and their chips. The card’s chip was produced by a consortium led by Mühlbauer, which secured a 10-year contract valued at $134 million.
Bulgaria has designated Evrotrust’s eID scheme as the country’s official digital identity program.
Comments