'Problem reading your Smartcard' error

When trying to log in you see this error:

There was a problem reading your Smartcard. Please restart the Identity Agent. If this fails to rectify the problem, please contact your Registration Authority service.

• Incorrect smartcard reader driver (this is the most common cause)
• Browser caching issues
• Invalid or missing software
• Slow-running machine
• Blank smartcard

As a smartcard user, there are some things you can try yourself before asking your IT department for help.

Unplug your keyboard

If you have a keyboard with a built-in smartcard reader, try unplugging the keyboard and plugging it in again, and retrying the smartcard.

Retry authentication

Remove the smartcard from the reader, reinsert it, and enter the passcode again.

Restart Identity Agent

Remove the smartcard from the reader and close Identity Agent. Reinsert the smartcard - Identity Agent will restart, and you can try to log in again.

Reboot your machine

Occasionally this can help with caching issues.

Check the smartcard reader driver

Read instructions on how to find and check your smartcard reader drivers. If your driver is incorrect, contact your own IT support team as described in the 'Next steps' section of this page.

Delay entering your passcode

Entering a passcode too quickly can cause this error, particularly on slower machines that use virtual machines or remote connections. After your insert your smartcard, wait a few seconds before entering your passcode, as this will allow the reader to finish reading the information on the smartcard.

This may happen more frequently with older version smartcards, so consider contacting your Registration Authority and asking to upgrade to a series 8 smartcard (Oberthur) or above.

Next steps

If these do not work, contact your local IT team for support as the next steps require full access to your machine to change settings or install/uninstall software. Depending on your organisation, this may be through your IT helpdesk, or via a dedicated Registration Authority team. As each organisation is set up differently, we cannot provide contact details that work for everyone. Check your intranet for links to an ICT helpdesk, Registration Authority or smartcard team. 

Provide the following in your support request:

Smartcard error

When authenticating with my smartcard, I get the following error in Identity Agent:

There was a problem reading your Smartcard. Please restart the Identity Agent. If this fails to rectify the problem, please contact your Registration Authority service.

I have followed the troubleshooting steps for smartcard users, but now need to raise a request for help as it requires more in-depth problem solving.

Step 1

Follow the instructions above for smartcard users, to check smartcard reader drivers, restart Identity Agent and reboot the machine.

Step 2

Check the Warranted Environment Specification, which has an up-to-date list of all components required for Spine services, including the Care Identity Service, such as browser types and operating systems.

Step 3

The CIS Diagnostic Tool should be the first resort for all Care Identity Service troubleshooting on a user's machine. The vast majority of reported problems can be diagnosed and fixed using this. You will need local machine admin access to run the tool and complete any fixes that it highlights.

Download the CIS Diagnostic Tool (needs HSCN connection) and follow the instructions for detailed troubleshooting.

NHS England is a central organisation that provides software that is deployed by local organisations to over a million users. For this reason, we provide setup guidance and diagnostic tools, but cannot help with local IT support for individual machines.

Step 4

There is a small chance that users authenticating with a smartcard that has been issued, renewed or repaired after the CIS release on Wednesday 25 January 2023 receive this error.

Modify the registry entry to include the following value:

This registry entry is found in the following locations:

• 32-bit Operating System:
  • Set by Group Policy: HKLM\SOFTWARE\Policies\HSCIC\Identity Agent
  • All Users: HKLM\SOFTWARE\HSCIC\Identity Agent
  • Current User: HKCU\SOFTWARE\HSCIC\Identity Agent
• 64-bit Operating System:
  • Set by Group Policy: HKLM\SOFTWARE\Policies\HSCIC\Identity Agent
  • All Users: HKLM\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\HSCIC\Identity Agent
  • Current User: HKCU\SOFTWARE\HSCIC\Identity Agent

Step 5

Run the cache clearance tool (needs HSCN connection). This is only useful when using a series 8 smartcard with Oberthur middleware running on the machine. 

If a user has locked their smartcard and it also requires the cache cleared on their machine, the user will get the “problem reading your smartcard” error rather than the expected locked smartcard error. The user needs to have their smartcard unlocked by their Registration Authority and then the Identity Agent will be able to perform cache clearance successfully. 

It may be necessary to run this tool more than once, then restart Identity Agent to correctly clear the cache and resolve the issue.

Be sure to close the Identity Agent before running the cache clearance tool.

Step 6

Check that the smartcard is not blank or outdated. You will need a Registration Authority role to check the smartcard status, using Care Identity Management.

Download Identity Agent v2.4.5.0 (needs HSCN connection).

Due to issues identified with previous versions of Identity Agent, no other versions of Identity Agent are available for download or recommended for deployment.

You can read detailed Identity Agent user and administrator guides on the Deployment Issue Resolution (DIR) team downloads website (needs an HSCN connection).

Return to the troubleshooting hub.