Running a modern country is an effort akin to managing a data center. Ensuring the State functions requires the management of large amounts of information. Estonia does not have a centralized database; instead, information is stored where it is created. Each government agency keeps its data separately and without duplication. That said, to function correctly, state authorities and decentralized agencies frequently need data outside their jurisdiction. For example, the police constantly require information from the population registry, just as the Unemployment Insurance Fund should provide information to the health system.
How can authorities exchange important data securely? First, the data must be easily accessible to authorized entities. Second, data integrity is fundamental. No third party should have the ability to manipulate data during its transfer. Third, the data must remain confidential throughout its journey; the information must be protected from the view of unauthorized entities. This brings us to X-Road.
X-Road is a platform designed in Estonia and now widely used by European Union countries and other governments, including those in Latin America, such as Colombia, or the province of Neuquén in Argentina. It serves as a data exchange platform that meets these three requirements. X-Road makes life simpler for the State and its citizens.
For example, when a person is born in Estonia, the information is sent directly from the hospital to the population registry. From there, it is automatically sent to the Health Fund so that the child has insurance and a family doctor assigned. This prevents the creation of excessive paperwork, saving time and resources. The State works in the background, actively, while we continue with our daily tasks. In this sense, X-Road helps authorities have more convenient and efficient workflows. Many activities can be automated, giving employees the freedom to focus on the human aspect. Authorities also don’t have to worry about the authenticity of the data, as they can be completely sure that what is received from the Ministry of Finance, for example, truly comes from there. Equally important is the fact that this works regardless of the technology used, as it is compatible with the main operating systems on the market. For the State, this platform makes it possible for authorities to exchange data efficiently. Sensitive information is transferred securely, and the system is so robust that it has not yet been breached by those with bad intentions. Since its inception in 2001, X-Road has operated continuously and without interruptions.
All this helps the State visualize how different authorities connect with each other. It also makes it possible to exchange data not only within the country but beyond its borders if the data centers and information systems of other countries function adequately and in coordination. The biggest beneficiaries are, of course, the citizens. They enjoy the benefits of a better-functioning State and save all the time they would otherwise spend on redundant paperwork and the cost this entails for the State, and therefore for the citizens. While X-Road presents itself as the ideal architecture for digital governments, Nation-States must continue to work on generating their own cyber defense and cybersecurity tools since they cannot rely on closed systems sold or offered by others for national security matters. Off-the-shelf security systems obtained abroad probably include backdoors[196] that allow their developers or the governments behind them to access our sensitive information. In this latter sense, the adoption of X-Road does not represent a greater threat, as although it was originally developed by Estonia, it is now open-source software, so we can all see what it does and how. Our request to open the black box of algorithms is fulfilled here, giving us the security we need.
[196] Menn, J. (2020). Spy agency ducks questions about “back doors” in tech products. Reuters. Viewed on February 19, 2023, at https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-security-congress-insight-idUSKBN27D1CS.