New Zealand tightens the rules for accredited digital identity providers
A consolidated rulebook now applies to every new application under the country's digital identity trust framework, including thresholds for detecting fake faces.
From 28 September, any company applying for accreditation under New Zealand's Digital Identity Services Trust Framework must meet the current consolidated version of the Trust Framework Rules 2024. Applications lodged on or before 27 September can continue under the old rules during a 90-day transition, Biometric Update reported.
The framework, run by the Digital Identity Services Trust Framework Authority, sets out what providers must do at different levels of assurance. Higher levels can require biometric checks that bind a person to their identity and liveness detection that catches spoofs such as masks or replayed video. The authority set thresholds for liveness detection in August.
What accreditation means
To be accredited, a provider must show it can manage identity information, privacy, security and risk. Its services are tested against New Zealand's identification standards, and privacy compliance is assessed independently. Successful providers receive a trust mark that lasts three years.
The model resembles the UK's digital verification services trust framework, which this month awarded its own trust mark to the first five certified providers. Both countries chose to certify a market of private providers against public rules rather than issue a single government credential.
For agencies and businesses relying on these providers, the consolidated rules mean one standard to check against. For providers, the bar now includes defending against the deepfakes and presentation attacks that have made remote identity checks harder to trust.
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