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Global Large-scale eID Landscape

A very large number of large-scale identity management systems (IDMSs) are being developed and deployed worldwide, but there is almost no ability to compare them, identify trends, locate potential interoperability issues, or develop metrics for them.  This is largely true because currently information about large-scale IDMSs is presented in very inconsistent, often confusing formats.  Particulars about the systems – technical, operational, policy-related – are haphazardly presented and discussed, leaving many unanswerable questions.  To date, there has been no known attempt to fill in the gaps and to present the information about these systems in a consistent format that would enable research, trend analysis, and the development of metrics.  

Now that large-scale IDMSs are being discussed publicly in a larger number of forums, such as the Oganisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), it is possible to obtain a large amount of data in public presentations.  The large number of participants in these forums also makes it easier and more possible to identify useful contacts in order to verify and complete the information in our proposed landscape.

The long-term goal of this project is to assemble a large enough store of information about large-scale IDMSs that several later projects will become viable.    Trend analyses and identification of barriers to interoperability of these systems will also be enabled by having this large amount of data on various systems in a consistent format.

System summaries will become available here beginning in summer 2009.

For more information, please contact Tanya Brewer.