The Open Source Simulator of the German Electronic Identity Card
Welcome to the Internet portal of the open source community for PersoSim, the simulator of the German electronic identity card (nPA or ePA). PersoSim aims to drive the software development for the new eID card and to increase the use of the eID card functions.
About the Project
The PersoSim project was commissioned by the
German Federal Office for Information Security (BSI) and is conducted by the
secunet Security Networks AG. The electronic identity card (nPA) with its integrated chip provides a higher authentication strength than do other authentication procedures, such as username and password, and thus is expected to be used increasingly in both eGovernment and eBusiness applications.
The open source project "PersoSim" provides a simulator for the smart card functions of the new eID card. The eID simulator allows interested users to verify their applications for the new eID card. It offers a versatile alternative to sample cards, which are not only difficult to get but also limited in their use, i.e. because of involved certificates.
For this purpose, the project seeks to bring together developers, businesses and government authorities in this online community. Interested users and developers are invited to contribute to the PersoSim community in different ways.
All protocols and security mechanisms for the electronic identity card of the technical guideline BSI TR-03110 are implemented in the simulator and allow a complete simulation of the eID function.
In addition to the eID simulator, virtual Windows- and Linux-based card readers (drivers) are developed in the project. These virtual readers allow application developers to also simulate the functions of the different types of reading devices (basic, standard or comfort reader) for the German identity card based on the technical guideline BSI TR-03119. Thus the virtual card reader supports the use of a PIN pad as it is the case with standard or comfort readers. The virtual drivers are a substitute for costly external test laboratory equipment.
