In response to unverified claims from local legislators that the Ministry of Digital Affairs’ Administration for Digital Industries （ADI） had paid membership fees twice when joining the FIDO Alliance, the ADI cited the Alliance’s guidelines, which states that once a nation’s government organization joins and becomes a member, other government organizations are exempt from paying an additional membership fee when they join. Taiwan’s Ministry of the Interior has already joined and paid for membership, which clears the ADI from paying fees, hence there had been no payment from the ADI. The ADI is hoping to clarify any misunderstandings regarding its FIDO Alliance membership and the issue of payment.

The FIDO Alliance's governmental members include the offices of Canada, Australia, the UK, the US, Germany, Thailand and South Korea that manage digital and online affairs. Its industry members include Microsoft, Apple Inc., Google, LINE, Meta, VMware, Amazon, eBay, NTT, KDDI, Softbank, Verizon, RSA, Visa, Mastercard, Intel, Qualcomm etc., all of them global giants in the online, software, e-commerce, cyber security, finance and chip industries, the ADI stated. Because of its responsibilities involving e-government, electronic signatures, and the digital industries of online, software, e-commerce and cyber security, ADI has joined the FIDO Alliance so as to exchange thoughts with respective countries and digital industry representatives on standards for online identification processes and relevant regulations, as well as to join in on discussions for drafting guidelines for relevant technologies, and to relay Taiwan's needs and practical experiences, also sharing trends for future technology development with industries within Taiwan.

In addition, the FIDO Alliance informs each member when it joins that “A Member may not transfer, assign or sublicense any of its rights or obligations.” FIDO Alliance divides its members into different working groups based on different governments, businesses and consumer scenarios. FIDO Alliance has a certification process, cyber security and privacy, biometrics, identity confirmation and binding and identification standards, etc., for technologies. The ADI's main role is to participate in each working group's discussions on topics including electronic signatures, practical use of digital industries, e-government and more. Consequently, the issues each organization participates in and the subsequent roles they play are not entirely the same; by joining and becoming an Alliance member, one can expand and deepen their involvement in international affairs and speed up their connection with the world, the ADI added.

The original content can be found at: https://moda.gov.tw/ADI/news/latest-news/3699