Self-reported strong electronic identification varies between population groups in Finland

Authors

• Tuulikki Vehko Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare, Helsinki
• Eero Lilja Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare, Helsinki
• Suvi Parikka Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare, Helsinki
• Anna-Mari Aalto Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare, Helsinki
• Hannamaria Kuusio Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare, Helsinki

DOI: https://doi.org/10.23996/fjhw.91512

Keywords:

internet access, digital divide [http://www.yso.fi/onto/yso/p8523], population characteristics, cross-sectional survey, Finland

Abstract

Strong electronic identification allows identity verification in digital services. Digital services refer to everyday services such as paying bills online or browsing health data and prescriptions in the service My Kanta Pages.

The study uses the data collected in national surveys: 1) Survey on Well-Being among Foreign Born Population (FinMonik, 2018–19) which was carried out in 18 different languages and had a response rate of 53% (N=12 877); and 2) National Survey of Health, Well-Being and Service Use on general population (FinSote, 2017–18) which had a response rate of 45% (N=26 422). In this study, the analysis was limited to respondents of working age (20–64 years), thus making the population sizes 6083 (foreign-born population) and 11 029 (general population). In both of the surveys, the respondents were asked the questions ”Do you have at your disposal internet access at home, your workplace, library or some other place?” and "Do you have at your disposal online banking codes or a mobile certificate for electronic identification online?”. The two closed-ended questions could only be answered with a “yes” or a “no”. Seven foreign-born population groups were defined based on the country of origin. Age-standardized proportions and their confidence intervals were calculated for the response variables. Logistic regression was used to calculate odds ratios. Differences between country groups and general population were examined using p-values provided by F-tests.

Almost all working age respondents (98%) of the general population reported access to the Internet while the corresponding proportion among foreign-born population was 92%, making it significantly lower (p < 0.001). The proportion of respondents self-reported strong electronic identification was higher among general population (98%) than among foreign-born population (88%, p < 0.001). Younger age predicted a higher odd ratio for self-reported strong identification. Among both the general and foreign-born population, the employed were more likely to report access to strong electronic identification than students.

Development of digital services requires user guidance, which takes into account the varying needs including strong electronic identification.