Galaxy S20 phones will soon replace physical IDs in Germany

The Galaxy S20 lineup features Samsung's embedded Secure Element (eSE) that acts as a safe, a separate secure processor to securely store sensitive data on the device like credit card information, documents and keys and isolates them for maximum protection.

Samsung on Thursday said that Germany’s National electronic ID (eID) will be available on selected Galaxy smartphones later this year. The South Korean tech giant has collaborated with the German Federal Office for Information Security (BSI), Bundesdruckerei (bdr), a leading German high-tech security company and Deutsche Telekom Security GmbH to develop a holistic security architecture centered around a smartphone's hardware and enable citizens to securely store their National identity on their smartphone as an eID.

Samsung said that the Galaxy S20 series, including the Galaxy S20, Galaxy S20+, and Galaxy S20 Ultra, is the first line of mobile devices that meet BSI's high-security standards for digital sovereign identities. The information can be stored locally on the device and users will have full control over their data, all thanks to a highly secure CC EAL 6+ certified chip embedded in the Galaxy S20 smartphone. 

The S20 lineup features Samsung's embedded Secure Element (eSE) that acts as a safe, a separate secure processor to securely store sensitive data on the device like credit card information, documents and keys and isolates them for maximum protection. The internationally-recognized chip (eSE), as Samsung claims, prevents malicious actors from stealing eID information even if they have physical access to the smartphone.

The new mobile eID solution is part of the OPTIMOS 2.0 project of the German government seeking to develop an open ecosystem that provides technologies and the infrastructure for secure online authentication using mobile devices. The eID app will be available to Galaxy S20 owners via the Play Store.