The Secure Identity Alliance has welcomed three new members to its ranks, marking an important step in growth of the newly formed organisation.

HID Global will play a crucial role in establishing the Alliance as the foremost advisor on the security and adoption of eGovernment services around the world.

"Through the Alliance we hope to play an instrumental role in helping governments streamline the integration and interoperability of new systems and processes – ultimately making government-to-citizen ID programs more secure and effective," said Rob Haslam, Vice President of Government ID Solutions for HID Global.

American Banknote Corporation (ABnote) brings its long and global experience in the supply of secure documents, services and systems.

Uwe Ludwig, CEO International Business Unit, ABnote said: "The challenges of meeting today’s requirements – to provide secure solutions to governments that are also convenient for citizens, provides many opportunities for innovation and collaboration. We look forward to participating in the Secure Identity Alliance, and feel that with our experience and expertise ABnote can make a significant contribution."

Backed by a 150 year heritage, Trüb AG brings a wealth of e-ID and e-Passport experience to the Alliance’s workgroup program.

"The identity document market has evolved significantly since the introduction of the first polycarbonate ID card in the 1990s and the launch of the first electronic-ID documents in the 2000s," said Fernando Dal Zotto, CEO, Trüb AG.

"In joining the Secure Identity Alliance, we can bring in our weight of expertise in order to support the collective effort to deliver rapid solutions to emerging challenges and to develop the market towards European solutions."

Frédéric Trojani, Chairman of the Board of the Secure Identity Alliance, said: "I am delighted to welcome HID Global, ABnote and Trüb AG to the Secure Identity Alliance. With eGovernment initiatives on the rise, electronic identification has become a real catalyst for the rapid adoption of online services."

He added: "Convenience, privacy protection and security are the three pillars of trust in modern, efficient electronic government services. The need for an independent forum able to address common areas of interest for all public and private stakeholders is clear to build today’s generation of online services."

Led by leading secure eDocuments companies Gemalto, Morpho (Safran), Oberthur Technologies and 3M, the Secure Identity Alliance was established in May 2013 to develop the usage of government-issued eDocuments (identity, health cards, driving licenses and ePassports in particular) for increased security, and to encourage deployment of secure convenient online services strengthening the privacy of the end-users.

Already, two workgroups have been launched to tackle the ongoing security, identity and privacy challenges governments face. The ‘Secure Documents’ and ‘Digital Identity’ groups are expected to report back at Cartes in November 2013.