The federal government has taken an important step towards implementing its Public Digital Infrastructure (PDI) for Civil Identification this Thursday (02/13). Resolution No. 21 of the Federal Executive Chamber for Citizen Identification (Cefic) was published in the Official Gazette of the Union (DOU), establishing the Federal Biometric Service to identify and biometrically verify applicants for the National Identity Card (CIN). So far, approximately 20.3 million CINs have already been issued across Brazil.
“We are beginning to materialize this infrastructure, which will be essential to offering better public services to people. When we say that the CIN is a citizenship instrument, we are referring to this initiative,” said Rogério Mascarenhas, Secretary of Digital Government at the Ministry of Management and Public Services Innovation (MGI).
For Célio Ribeiro, president of InterID, this integration marks a significant milestone. “Brazil is taking a great and important step towards strengthening its Identification System and structuring its Public Digital Infrastructure for Civil Identification. The implementation of the CIN Federal Biometric Service will provide the desired national integration in a secure and qualified manner, allowing numerous benefits for people in their interactions with public and private services,” he stated.
Cefic, established by Decree No. 11,429/2023, is responsible for formulating and overseeing the execution of the Citizen Identification Service (SIC), both in biometric standards and in the development of the electronic version of the CIN. The executive chamber works on regulatory aspects and administrative, technical, and security procedures for the identification of natural persons. In addition to the MGI, Cefic includes entities such as the Civil House, Ministry of Health (MS), Ministry of Justice and Public Security (MJSP), and the Ministry of Finance (MF).
According to the resolution, state and Federal District identification agencies, as well as SIC executive bodies, must use the Federal Biometric Service to share biographical and biometric data for civil identification. This will also enable verification with other biometric databases and allow the issuance of duplicate CINs in any federation unit.
“This project will allow us to unequivocally identify people. As a result, the entire population will benefit, as it will facilitate the planning and development of public policies, such as granting benefits like Bolsa Família, BPC, and INSS,” added the secretary. According to the resolution, Cefic will establish the service implementation plan within 90 days. This document will be developed within its Technical Working Groups of the executive chamber.
Public Digital Infrastructure
A PDI is a set of shared digital systems that must be secure and interoperable. These systems can be built based on open specifications and standards to ensure equitable access to public and private services. One possible application for private services is in bank loan searches.
The Civil Identification PDI, established by Decree 12,069/24 and currently being implemented by the government, will use the CIN database and digital identification via GOV.BR, which currently has over 164 million users and provides access to more than 4,500 services. Additionally, this PDI will be based on two principles: minimalism, meaning only identification data will be used, and privacy, ensuring complete information security.
Advantages of the CIN
Among the benefits of the CIN is its national standard and unique number for the entire country. This eliminates, for example, the possibility of an individual issuing multiple identity cards in each of the 27 federal units, as the CPF number becomes the national registration of Brazilian citizens. As a result, people will maintain the same identification number in any state, enhancing the document’s security.
