SSC Authentication Standards Successful

The State Services Commission, together with Datacom and Microsoft, has successfully demonstrated how the Authentications Standards support third-party applications connecting with the Government Logon Service.

The research, run out of the Microsoft Innovation Centre, explored how the Microsoft Identity Metasystem application CardSpace, could work with the standards-based igovt service offered by the State Services Commission and the Department of Internal Affairs.

igovt is a secure and convenient service that lets people identify themselves online so they can safely access government services such as applying for a student loan or reviewing rates accounts with the City Council.   igovt includes two services:

• The Government Logon Service (GLS) is a way to use the same logon, such as username and password, to access all of government's online services.  This saves people from having to remember multiple logon details for different government services
• The Identity Verification Service (IVS) will in the future be a way for people to use the Internet to verify their identity with government agencies.  This will save people time and money because they will not have to use documents repeatedly to prove their identity to every government agency they deal with.

The Innovation Centre research successfully demonstrated how CardSpace could be added to the suite of authentication mechanisms employed by the GLS and points the way towards future interoperability with the IVS.

Laurence Millar, Deputy Commissioner and Government CIO said, “This prototype shows how, using the suite of All-of-government Authentication Standards, Windows CardSpace can integrate with the Government Logon Service (GLS).  It is important that we take advantage of opportunities to work with major software suppliers to integrate government technology into future software products.”  

More information on the Authentication programme is available on the e-government website: http://e.govt.nz/services/authentication