Straumurinn (X-Road) is a data exchange system that enables information systems to share data with one another in a secure and reliable manner. Straumurinn is based on a distributed system, without a centralized data storage. All data is therefore stored by the institution that owns it and only transmitted when needed. 

Straumurinn facilitates cooperation between institutions and other public entities and eliminates the need to create a specific data connection between them. As an infrastructure system, Straumurinn makes it easier, more secure, and more efficient to provide digital services. All public institutions and municipalities in Iceland can use the service of Straumurinn to transfer data with the aim of improving services to the public.  

Examples of how Straumurinn benefits institutions, companies, and the public: 

• Public entities can securely send data between each other. For example, the District commissioners and the National Registry can share data necessary to process a driver’s license application. 

• With Straumurinn, public entities can connect to certain core services of Digital Iceland and publish information on My Pages and/or use the Ísland.is Application System. 

 There are already over one hundred users of Straumurinn in Iceland.  

Data Security 

Communication through Straumurinn (X-Road) is secured with encryption. The central service of Digital Iceland connects service providers and service recipients in a standardized manner but does not have access to the content of the communication. 

• The integrity of the data is ensured through direct communication between both parties without the involvement of intermediaries. The service provider ensures that data is always up to date and accessible to service recipients who have the appropriate authorisation. 

• Communication between both parties is fully traceable, and it is clear who accessed the data and when, as all interactions are timestamped by the central authority server of Digital Iceland. 

• Straumurinn is built on multiple layers of regulation that together ensure maximum protection of electronic communications. The first line of defense involves the authentication and identification of users, confirming who is using the system at any given time. Secondly, data transmission is protected by encryption, ensuring that no unauthorized party can read or alter the data during transfer between parties. The third security layer involves the timestamping of actions, which guarantees traceability. 

Benefits for public entities

• Secure data transfer. 

• Management and oversight of access. 

• Streamlining of setup and operations. 

• Standardized communication channels between information systems prevent duplication of effort in interactions with the public sector. 

• Data moves between institutions, not people. Information entered into one system can flow into another—there is no need to request information already held by public entities. 

 Development of Straumurinn 

Iceland is a member of NIIS (Nordic Institute for Interoperability Solutions), which is working on the further development of Straumurinn. Straumurinn was developed by Estonia and Finland for public services and has been in use since 2002. The implementation of Straumurinn (X-Road) in Iceland formally began in November 2018, when Bjarni Benediktsson, then Minister of Finance and Economic Affairs, signed a cooperation agreement with Finland and Estonia. 

Once Straumurinn has been implemented, public entities can share information with each other. You can see which public entities have implemented Straumurinn on Digital Iceland‘s site, Digital Steps.