NHS Smartcard Connect is a new Care Identity Service authentication client using CIS2 Authentication.
Smartcard Connect is installed as part of a package that includes version 3 of NHS Credential Management. It includes all the previous functionality of older versions of NHS Credential Management, specifically the functionality that allows Spine applications to work without requiring Java applets. This allows them to be used in modern browsers such as Edge and Chrome, instead of Internet Explorer or Edge in IE compatibility mode.
https://digital.nhs.uk/services/care-identity-service/applications-and-services/technical-services/nhs-smartcard-connect