7 rules for designing acceptable identity mechanisms in e-government services

Abstract: 
In the past, governments have used “inappropriate levels of authentication”  (DG Information Society and Media, 2007) for their services. This paper discusses the relationship between identity mechanisms and citizen adoption of eGovernment services and compares the e-government approach to the e-commerce one. We argue that designers of e-government identity need to pay attention to 7 rules to design acceptable identity solutions: Adequacy, Acceptance, Abrasion, Frequency, Elasticity, Absorption and Obliteration.