The official site of Italy's central bank

Digital signature

Bank of Italy is an Accredited Certifier, officially recognized by the National Centre for ICT in the Public Administration (DigitPA).

The Bank issues qualified digital signature certificates that can be used to sign electronic documents fully equivalent, by law, to documents signed with an handwritten signature.

The Bank also issues:

- authentication certificates, that allow to verify the identity of the persons that access databases or information systems;
- encryption certificates, that preserve the confidentiality of stored or shared data and information.

The certificates are issued to the Bank's employees and, in quite special cases, to institutional interlocutor's representatives and are used to carry out electronic transactions only with the Bank (art. 34, comma 1, of the D.L. 82/2005 - Digital administration code).

Bank of Italy also has a time stamping service which allows to certify the time and date in which a specific electronic document has been produced or shared on an electronic network. This service can be applied for only by the holders of digital signature certificates issued by Bank of Italy.

The Certificate Practice Statement (CPS) intended for certificate holders and for interested parties, explains the procedures used by the Bank in carrying out the certification service and lists duties and liabilities of the persons involved.