Microsoft has launched four new open source projects designed to implement information cards in a variety of formats, including Java, Tomcat (for IBM WebSphere servers), Ruby on Rails, PHP and a generic C library. It is expected that the results of these efforts will complement the ability of the Windows CardSpace identity-management system to support information cards.

The new projects will be hosted on two open source project sites: SourceForge and RubyForge. They’ll also be aggregated at codeplex.com, Microsoft’s collaborative development portal. more

Internetnews.com announces that the first meeting of the concordia project will take place later this month. In a move intended to enable competing identity management technologies to interoperate, a new forum will hold a key meeting in San Francisco on June 26 to find out first hand what users want.

The forum aims to provide a neutral ground for competing identity management players to communicate with each other and with customers in a venue that looks toward tearing down barriers to interoperability between their systems. The Concordia project is a global initiative designed to drive interoperability across identity protocols in use today. Representatives from Liberty Alliance, Microsoft and OpenID will participate in the forum.

Coming soon…  NetIDme premium service users will soon be able to use their virtual Net-ID cards to access many online services, thanks to CardSpace technology. 

The basics…
Windows CardSpace enables users to provide their digital identities in a familiar, secure and easy manner. In the physical world we use business cards, credit cards and membership cards. In the online world we can now choose from a range of virtual cards to identify ourselves, each retrieving data from a trusted identity provider.  The virtual cards are stored in a secure place on your PC - imagine it like a virtual wallet that only you can access. All of these cards have one thing in common - a trusted organisation has checked the identity of the card holder, and the card verifies their identity. The cards might have different types of information. For example, a card issued by a financial institute might contain your credit card details, which is unnecessary for many web services. 

The technical bit…There are three parties involved in CardSpace - The User (owner of the digital identity), the Relying Party (a website), and the Identity Provider (NetIDme).  

When a User wants to access an online service provided by a Relying Party, the Relying Party will request identification. This request displays as a policy that describes the information required for the transaction, such as the user’s name, address and credit card details.  If the User decides to go ahead with the transaction, a request is sent to the Identity Provider for a signed token that contains the relevant details. This is then passed to the Relying Party and the transaction is completed.  

The benefits…You are in control of your dataYour personal details are more secureYou don’t have to remember numerous usernames and passwordsYou don’tr have to complete the same forms each time you register for a new service  CardSpace technology puts you in control, as you can view what information is being requested, and decide whether or not to continue with the transaction. You choose which card to present from your secure ‘virtual wallet’. For example, you wouldn’t use your bank card to join a free forum. Bookmark us, and come back soon for further details.