Handling paperwork online
The single sign-on button for public services
What you will be able to do In 6 minutes, you will know how to recognize and use the single sign-on button to access a public service without creating a new account.
Many government websites now show a button that says "Sign in with my digital identity", next to the usual "Create an account" button. This button lets you reuse an account you already have, opened with an agency that already knows you, rather than building a new one with yet another password to remember. This principle has a name: single sign-on. It does not create anything new and does not keep your information: it passes it, just once, from the account you chose to the service you want to use, after showing you what is being shared. We will practice on a screen we have drawn. Nothing here is real, so nothing can happen to you.
Simulated screen
I practice
This screen was drawn by us. Nothing is sent, nothing is installed, and no real brand is shown.
The situationYou want to make an online request, and this website offers to sign you in without creating a new account.
The interactive exercise needs JavaScript. The written step by step, just below, says exactly the same thing.
The written step by step
The same steps, in words, to read or print. This sheet works even without the exercise.
The right button
Your turn You do not have an account on this website. Tap the button that lets you sign in without creating a new one.
The "Sign in with my digital identity" button reuses a government account you already have, without creating a new one.
An account that counts
Your turn This service accepts several government accounts. Tap an account you genuinely have the right to use here.
We choose an account opened with a recognized government agency, for example the tax office or health insurance.
The code belongs only to you
Your turn A verification code arrives by text message. Tap what you do with it.
The code received by text message is typed only on the official screen that just requested it, right away, and by you alone.
What is shared, what stays
Your turn Reread what this screen is about to share, then tap what gives your agreement.
We reread the information shown, and if it is accurate, we tap "Continue and share this information".
Closing properly
Your turn You are using a public computer at a library. Tap what you do before leaving.
On a shared computer, we sign out before leaving: that is the step that truly closes the door.
The sheet to keep
- The single sign-on button reuses a government account you already have: it does not create a new one.
- Only accounts opened with a recognized government agency work, not a social network or hobby account.
- A code received by text message during sign-in is never given to anyone: it is typed in right away, on the screen asking for it.
- A confirmation screen always shows what is about to be shared, before anything is sent: you reread it before continuing.
- This principle has a name: single sign-on. It does not store your information, it only passes it, once, with your agreement.
- On a shared computer, sign out before leaving.
The reflexes in this skill
I stop before I click
Urgency is the sign of a trap. A message that counts down the hours is trying to stop you from thinking. Putting your phone down for two minutes costs nothing, and it is almost always enough.
A code I receive is never given to anyone
A one time code received by text message proves that it is really you. No advisor, no delivery driver, no service will ever ask for it. Giving it away opens the door in your place.
I go through the official door
The address typed in by hand, the app installed from the official store, the phone number printed on the back of your card. Never the link someone hands you, even when it looks right.
Two questions to check
Nothing is graded, and nothing is saved anywhere except in your own browser.
The single sign-on button saves you time. What exactly happens when you use it?
See the answer
The website receives certain information from your existing government account, with your agreement
No new account, no password shared: only a few pieces of identity information pass from the account you chose to the service, after a screen shows them to you.
A service asks you for a code received by text message during sign-in. What do you do?
See the answer
I type it only on the official screen that asked for it
The code only works once, for you, on the screen that sent it. No one else needs to know it, not even someone well-meaning who offers to help.
I've done it
Check this box once you can do this skill on your own.
Your progress stays in your own browser.