Queensland transitions to new digital identity system

Queensland has officially retired its legacy digital identity system, QGov, after completing the transition to a “modern digital architecture”.

The Queensland Digital Identity (QDI) will now serve as the single access point for logging into the state government’s online services.

Operated by the Department of Transport and Main Roads (TMR), QDI was initially developed “to support the launch” of the agency’s digital licence app in 2023, a TMR spokesperson told iTnews.

“The QDI is a modern, robust, and innovative system which meets national standards and security protocols for digital identities,” the spokesperson added.

“This change took place because the QGov system had reached end-of-life.

“A modern digital architecture that meets the identity and security needs of Queenslanders is now in its place.”

A number of active QGov accounts were either migrated to the new QDI platform or merged with existing accounts, such as those linked to the digital licence app.

Other users, meanwhile, will be required to create a fresh account using verification in the form of a driver licence, passport, and birth certificate.

According to the TMR, the QDI system is intended to serve as a “single, unique” account tied to one email address and verified by identity documents upon first-time log-in.

To avoid the account fragmentation seen under the QGov system, individuals are unable to use the same identity details to create multiple QDI accounts.

Although TMR did not reveal the QDI’s underlying technology architecture, the department said it aligned with the federal government’s Digital ID system “to ensure secure and interoperable identity verification”.

From a security perspective, the QDI service includes multi-factor authentication via SMS or an authenticator app, and supports Passkey functionality, allowing users to set up local biometric login on their devices for accessing QDI.