User-Adapted Web Services by Extending the eIDAS Specification with Functional Attributes

Area of Science:

• Computer Science
• Human-Computer Interaction
• Web Services Accessibility

Background:

• Web services require adaptation to diverse user functional capabilities from the design phase.
• Previous models relied on self-declared user identity and attributes, impacting reliability and usability.
• The European electronic Identification, Authentication and Trust Services (eIDAS) regulation facilitates cross-border electronic identification.

Purpose of the Study:

• To extend the eIDAS regulation to incorporate functional user attributes for web service adaptation.
• To connect a previously proposed model for adapted interfaces with the extended eIDAS network.
• To enable reliable, personalized web interfaces without prior user configuration by leveraging official eIDs.

Main Methods:

• Proposed an extension to the eIDAS model to include functional attributes.
• Developed a mechanism to connect the eIDAS network with external attribute providers.
• Deployed a pilot system including an identity provider, an extended eIDAS node, and an attribute provider.

Main Results:

• A pilot demonstrated a service supporting eID authentication and serving adapted interfaces based on extended eIDAS profiles.
• User feedback from individuals with varying functional capabilities validated the proposed solution.
• The system successfully integrated official eIDs with functional attributes for personalized web service delivery.

Conclusions:

• The proposed extension to eIDAS reliably supports functional attributes for web service adaptation.
• Widespread adoption can significantly enhance the accessibility, usability, and adaptability of European digital web services.
• This approach improves user experience by automatically tailoring interfaces to individual capacities.