As expected, the bill enabling the Green Passport was passed in the Austrian Parliament on Wednesday. In addition to the governing parties ÖVP and the Greens, the SPÖ and the NEOS also voted in favor of the bill in the end. This means that the digital ID card, which was heavily disputed in the run-up to the bill and can be used to prove vaccination, tests and survived illnesses, will become a reality in Austria.
The plans call for the Green Passport to be available in just a few days, on June 4 to be precise. This would allow people to identify themselves as tested, recovered or vaccinated via QR code. Whether the ambitious date will hold, however, is unclear. EU-wide, plans call for a launch at the end of June – in order to have more time to set up the infrastructure.
Improvements in data protection
After various aspects of the green passport drew fierce criticism from data protectionists, the government made improvements to data protection. The “super data register”, in which sensitive data on working life, income and sick leave could have been centrally linked, is now off the table. And the eCard as proof of eligibility for the Green Passport has also been cancelled for the time being.
- source: futurezone.at/picture; pixabay.com
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