By Michael Garcia, Acting Director of the National Strategy for Trusted Identities in Cyberspace (NSTIC) National Program Office (NPO)
In the NSTIC, the president called for an "overarching set of interoperability standards, risk models, privacy and liability policies, requirements, and accountability mechanisms that structure the Identity Ecosystem."
Today, I'm proud to announce that the privately-led Identity Ecosystem Steering Group (IDESG) has delivered. Thanks to the incredible dedication of the IDESG's volunteer membership, version 1 of the Identity Ecosystem Framework (IDEF) is now a final public document. This framework raises the bar for online transactions and substantially advances the Identity Ecosystem.
The IDEF provides a foundation for the Identity Ecosystem, which is necessary to continually improve online commerce, the efficiency of digital services, and online interactions. The IDEFv1 will also serve as the foundation for the Self-Assessment Listing Service (SALS)-poised to be operational in January-that will enable businesses and organizations to assess and report on the status of their conformance to the minimum requirements for alignment with the NSTIC Guiding Principles that identity solutions will be: privacy-enhancing and voluntary, secure and resilient, interoperable, and cost effective and easy to use.
Service providers that self-attest will have the opportunity to differentiate their services by demonstrating the enhanced protections and practices they have put in place to safeguard consumers and business partners. Individuals and organizations can then more easily identify trust-worthy service providers and solutions-an essential step in building a vibrant and flourishing Identity Ecosystem. The complete IDEFv1 package released today includes:
- Baseline requirements: the set of minimum requirements for identity ecosystem participants
- Supplemental guidance: additional information to further clarify the requirements for all audiences
- Functional model: a breakdown of the functions in an identity interaction
- Scoping statement: setting the path for the IDEFv2 and the IDESG program listing and certification scheme
Since day one I've stood as witness to the remarkable effort of the IDESG's volunteers. Now, I'm excited to see the impact of the IDEFv1 on the marketplace for identity solutions and the impact of more trustworthy solutions for consumers. In the coming months the IDESG will finalize the SALS to ensure a simple and streamlined ability for organizations to self-attest to the IDEFv1. I look forward to more progress in the future and thank everyone for their continued dedication. Congratulations!
To see the released IDEFv1 package, please visit
https://www.idesg.org/IdentityRevolution and follow the NSTIC NPO on
Twitter for updates.