IAMS framework: a new framework for acceptable user experiences for integrating physical and virtual identity access management systems

The modern world is populated with so many virtual and physical Identity Access Management Systems (IAMSs) that individuals are required to maintain numerous passwords and login credentials. The tedious task of remembering multiple login credentials can be minimised through the utilisation of an innovative approach of single sign-in mechanisms. During recent times, several systems have been developed to provide physical and virtual identity management systems; however, most have not been very successful. Many of the available systems do not provide the feature of virtual access on mobile devices via the internet; this proves to be a limiting factor in the usage of the systems. Physical spaces, such as offices and government entities, are also favourable places for the deployment of interoperable physical and virtual identity management systems, although this area has only been explored to a minimal level. Alongside increasing the level of awareness for the need to deploy interoperable physical and virtual identity management systems, this paper addresses the immediate need to establish clear standards and guidelines for successful integration of the two medium

Security, user experience, acceptability attributes for the integration of physical and virtual identity access management systems

A number of systems have been developed in the recent history to provide physical and virtual identity management systems; however, most have not been very successful. Furthermore, alongside increasing the level of awareness for the need to deploy interoperable physical and virtual identity management systems, there exists an immediate need for the establishment of clear standards and guidelines for the successful integration of the two mediums. The importance and motivation for the integration of the two mediums is discussed in this paper with respect to three perspectives: Security, which includes identity; User Experience, comprising Usability; and Acceptability, containing Accessibility. Not many systems abide by such guidelines for all of these perspectives; thus, our proposed system (UbIAMS) aims to change this and provide its users with access to their services from any identity access management system rather than merely providing access to a specific set of system

Governance Models for Interoperable Electronic Identities

Current implementations of electronic identity in Europe are rather diverse; they include state-driven identity management frameworks as well as private sector frameworks and different forms of public-private collaborations. This diversity may represent a major challenge for the deployment of information society services addressed towards the European internal market. This raises the question: How can we achieve interoperability of electronic identities across Europe, and potentially beyond Europe’s borders? This paper argues that the interoperability of electronic identity could be governed by a multi-stakeholder governance framework that brings together different parties with interests in the provision and use of electronic identities. Such a governance framework could, for example, consist in designing and operating a portal with common functionalities that allows interoperable authentication across multiple domains and contexts. Inspiration for the governance of such a portal could come both from existing successful implementations of electronic identity and from multi-stakeholder institutions that have proven useful in Internet governance.

The State of the Electronic Identity Market: Technologies, Infrastructure, Services and Policies

Authenticating onto systems, connecting to mobile networks and providing identity data to access services is common ground for most EU citizens, however what is disruptive is that digital technologies fundamentally alter and upset the ways identity is managed, by people, companies and governments. Technological progress in cryptography, identity systems design, smart card design and mobile phone authentication have been developed as a convenient and reliable answer to the need for authentication. Yet, these advances ar enot sufficient to satisfy the needs across people's many spheres of activity: work, leisure, health, social activities nor have they been used to enable cross-border service implementation in the Single Digital Market, or to ensure trust in cross border eCommerce. The study findings assert that the potentially great added value of eID technologies in enabling the Digital Economy has not yet been fulfilled, and fresh efforts are needed to build identification and authentication systems that people can live with, trust and use. The study finds that usability, minimum disclosure and portability, essential features of future systems, are at the margin of the market and cross-country, cross-sector eID systems for business and public service are only in their infancy. This report joins up the dots, and provides significant exploratory evidence of the potential of eID for the Single Digital Market. A clear understanding of this market is crucial for policy action on identification and authentication, eSignature and interoperability.JRC.DDG.J.4-Information Societ

Trustworthy Cross-Border Interoperable Identity System for Developing Countries

Foundational identity systems (FIDS) have been used to optimise service delivery and inclusive economic growth in developing countries. As developing nations increasingly seek to use FIDS for the identification and authentication of identity (ID) holders, trustworthy interoperability will help to develop a cross-border dimension of e-Government. Despite this potential, there has not been any significant research on the interoperability of FIDS in the African identity ecosystem. There are several challenges to this; on one hand, complex internal political dynamics have resulted in weak institutions, implying that FIDS could be exploited for political gains. On the other hand, the trust in the government by the citizens or ID holders is habitually low, in which case, data security and privacy protection concerns become paramount. In the same sense, some FIDS are technology-locked, thus interoperability is primarily ambiguous. There are also issues of cross-system compatibility, legislation, vendor-locked system design principles and unclear regulatory provisions for data sharing. Fundamentally, interoperability is an essential prerequisite for e-Government services and underpins optimal service delivery in education, social security, and financial services including gender and equality as already demonstrated by the European Union. Furthermore, cohesive data exchange through an interoperable identity system will create an ecosystem of efficient data governance and the integration of cross-border FIDS. Consequently, this research identifies the challenges, opportunities, and requirements for cross-border interoperability in an African context. Our findings show that interoperability in the African identity ecosystem is vital to strengthen the seamless authentication and verification of ID holders for inclusive economic growth and widen the dimensions of e-Government across the continent.Comment: 18 pages, 4 figures, In 2023 Trustworthy Digital Identity International Conference, Bengaluru, Indi

Improvements of Pan-European IDM Architecture to Enable Identity Delegation Based on X.509 Proxy Certificates and SAML

To foster the secure use of telematic services provided by public institutions, most European countries – and others in the rest of the world – are promoting electronic identification systems among their citizens to enable fully reliable identification. However, in today’s globalized environment, it is becoming more common for citizens and entities of a given country, with their own electronic credentials under the legal framework of their country, to seek access to the public services provided by other countries with different legal frameworks and credentials. At present, a number of projects in the European Union are attempting to solve the problem through the use of pan-European identity management systems that ensure interoperability between the public institutions of different Member States. However, the solutions adopted to date are inadequate, for they do not envision all possible cases of user interaction with institutions. Specifically, they fail to address a very important aspect provided in different national legal systems, namely delegation of identity, by which a citizen can authorize another to act on his or her behalf in accessing certain services provided by public institutions. This paper provides a thorough analysis of problems of delegation and proposes an architecture based on X.509 Proxy Certificates and SAML assertions to enable delegation in provision of services in the complex and heterogeneous environment presented by the public institutions of the European Union as a whole

Electronic Identity in Europe: Legal challenges and future perspectives (e-ID 2020)

This deliverable presents the work developed by the IPTS eID Team in 2012 on the large-encompassing topic of electronic identity. It is structured in four different parts: 1) eID: Relevance, Le-gal State-of-the-Art and Future Perspectives; 2) Digital Natives and the Analysis of the Emerging Be-havioral Trends Regarding Privacy, Identity and Their Legal Implications; 3) The "prospective" use of social networking services for government eID in Europe; and 4) Facial Recognition, Privacy and Iden-tity in Online Social Networks.JRC.J.3-Information Societ

Quantum surveillance and 'shared secrets'. A biometric step too far? CEPS Liberty and Security in Europe, July 2010

It is no longer sensible to regard biometrics as having neutral socio-economic, legal and political impacts. Newer generation biometrics are fluid and include behavioural and emotional data that can be combined with other data. Therefore, a range of issues needs to be reviewed in light of the increasing privatisation of ‘security’ that escapes effective, democratic parliamentary and regulatory control and oversight at national, international and EU levels, argues Juliet Lodge, Professor and co-Director of the Jean Monnet European Centre of Excellence at the University of Leeds, U