For the purposes of this report, the following definitions of terms apply.

• Digital divide
  The digital divide means that internet access has benefits and lack of access has negative consequences. The concept stems from a comparative perspective on social inequality.
• Digital inclusion
  Digital inclusion is a policy approach that promotes equal access to digital technologies that individuals need in order to participate in everyday social and economic life. It is an EU-wide effort aiming to empower everyone to contribute to and benefit from the digital world. [252]European Commission (n.d.), ‘Digital Inclusion’.
  
• Digital inequality
  Digital inequality refers to the disadvantages some groups face in accessing the internet and the ability to participate in a digital society. It has been described as a “unique status quo where groups differing in characteristics such as socioeconomic background, age and gender are disadvantaged in terms of access, knowledge, competency, and costs with respect to digital resources.” [253] Imran, A. (2023). ‘Why addressing digital inequality should be a priority’, Electronic Journal of Information Systems in Developing Countries, Vol. 89, No. 3, e12255.
  
  The impact of digital inequality can be widespread. It can exacerbate existing inequalities including education, health and life expectancy. Some suggest that the true extent of the impact of digital inequality is difficult to predict as digital technology advances; “As economic and social divides are synergistic, we have to accept that as long as such divides persist, the digital divide cannot be bridged.” [254]Ibid.
  
• Digital literacy
  Digital literacy is based on individuals’ capacity to search for, find, evaluate, create and communicate information digitally. The concept hence involves specific digital skills and competences, and general awareness of digitalisation. [255]Bawden, D. (2008), ‘Origins and concepts of digital literacy’ in: Lankshear, C. and Knobel, M. (eds.), Digital literacies: Concepts, policies and practices, Bern, Peter Lang Publishing, pp. 17–32.
  
• Digital poverty
  Digital poverty is the inability to access the online world when and how people need to. [256] See the Digital Poverty Alliance website.
  
• Digitalisation
  Digitalisation is the ongoing integration of digital technologies and digitised data. This report uses the terms digitalised public services and public services undergoing digitalisation, as the extent of digitalisation of key services varies widely across the EU. Therefore, this report refers to all public services, including those services that are not digital, and those that are in the process but are not yet fully digitalised, as well as fully digitalised public services, reflecting the various stages of digitalisation across Member States.
  Digitalisation is an ongoing process; even if all services become available online, technology and skill needs will also continue to evolve.
  The digitalisation of public services is one of the four cardinal points of the Digital Decade policy programme. The target is for 100 % of key public services to be digitalised by 2030.
• E-government
  E-government is a technology-enabled transformation of government. It aims to reduce costs, promote economic development, increase transparency, improve service delivery and public administration, and facilitate the advancement of an information society.
• Electronic health record
  The electronic health record is a system that gives citizens secure access to a comprehensive electronic record of their health data anywhere in the EU. Citizens should remain in control of their health data and be able to share them securely with authorised parties for medical treatment, preventive services, research or any other purpose they deem appropriate. This should be irrespective of where the data are located and in line with data protection legislation. Unauthorised access should be prevented.
• Equal access to public services
  Equal access means everyone having full access to public services provided by the local, regional or national administration, online and offline. Examples include pension services, health services and services related to social benefits.
• European Digital Decade
  The European Digital Decade is a policy programme that presents the objectives, targets and annual monitoring mechanism for measuring the progress (the DESI) of the European Commission’s vision for a digitally transformed Europe by 2030. The Commission proposed the programme in its communication ‘2030 digital compass: The European way for the digital decade’ of 9 March 2021. The European Declaration on Digital Rights and Principles for the Digital Decade was adopted on 15 December 2022 to ensure that European values are reflected in the digital transition process.
• Intersectionality
  Intersectionality is described as  “a concept and theoretical framework that facilitate[s] recognition of the complex ways in which social identities overlap and, in negative scenarios, can create compounding experiences of discrimination”. [257]UN Network on Racial Discrimination and Protection of Minorities (2022),Guidancenote on intersectionality, racial discrimination and protection of minorities, 22 September 2022, p. 3.
  
  For example, older persons’ enjoyment of their fundamental rights is therefore influenced by not only their age but a complex interaction of their social identities and experiences. These may combine to affect their ability to thrive in digitalising societies.
• Life course approach/perspective
  The life course approach is when researchers or policymakers focus on structural, social and cultural contexts across a person’s life span. The life course is hence understood as a socially constructed and dynamic process that interrelates with individual life trajectories. [258] Elder, G. H. (1994), ‘Time, human agency, and social change: Perspectives on the life course’, Social Psychology Quarterly, Vol. 57, No. 1, pp. 4–15.
  
• Older persons, elderly persons and other age groups
  Older persons, sometimes called elderly persons, are an open-ended age group; the minimum age is often 65 years. This aligns with the most widely used maximum working age: 64 years. This report uses the age of 65 years, because many people are no longer in employment at this age and therefore have less access to training, devices and internet through their workplaces.
  However, policies, statistics and research often use different age groups for different purposes. For example, Eurostat data often allow breakdowns for 55 to 64 years, 65 to74 years and 55 to 74 years. No data about people aged 75 years and older are available. See the text in the box on  Definition of ‘older persons’  in Chapter  1 Ageing and digital societies: leaving no one behind.
• Public administration
  Public administration refers to all organisations of the executive authority at central, regional and local levels involved in the design, regulation or enforcement of public policies. Its role is to ensure access to high-quality public services. In the context of the digital transformation of public services, it is responsible for ensuring that all citizens have public services close at hand, and equal and easy access to them.
• Public services
  Public services are all interactions between the government and citizens, businesses and other service users, where some kind of exchange of information or funds takes place. For example, registering, licensing, applying and paying are considered public services. The most visible public services concern health, education, the police and welfare. [259] European Commission, Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion (2017), Quality of public administration: A toolbox for practitioners, 2017 edition, Luxembourg, Publications Office.
  Services need to ensure equality or universality by being available to all under the same conditions.
• Social inequality
  Social inequality is described as unequal access to, or allocation of, goods or resources in a society. It can result in disparities between different groups and/or individuals in a society and their wealth, power or privilege.