The US Department of Homeland Security is funding three projects to explore the use of mobile devices for digital identity. Grants valued at up to $2.4 million were awarded to the Kantara Initiative, an industry organization that develops digital identity specifications and programs. The three projects develop and deploy mobile solutions for attribute verification, authentication and physical access control.

The grants were made by the Command, Control and Interoperability Center for Advanced Data Analysis (CCICADA), a research center at the Rutgers University funded by the DHS Science & Technology Directorate. The projects will be operated from the Kantara Identity and Privacy Incubator Program, each in conjunction with a Kantara member company.

PROJECT: Mobile Device Attribute Verification (MDAV)
DEVELOPER: Lockstep Technologies, Australia

MDAV delivers secure digitally-signed attributes on smart phones, assuring the validity and provenance of attributes, attribute sources and devices through the recasting of digital certificate policy. The initial use cases include credentials for first responders, mobile drivers licenses, e-health records, electronic travel documentation and privacy-enhanced national IDs.

PROJECT: Emergency Responder Authentication System for Mobile UserS (ERASMUS)
DEVELOPER: Gluu Inc, USA

Key to an emergency response is the ability for multiple organizations to share up-to-date information about a first responder’s identity, skills and authorizations. The ERASMUS pilot will demonstrate how a mobile-enabled identity federation can provide the tools and rules for distributed identity management. The pilot will be the first implementation of an emerging Kantara standard called the Open Trust Taxonomy for Federation Operators. The pilot will showcase a mobile application of a federated identity infrastructure for in person skills verification.

PROJECT: Derived Credentials and NFC for Physical Access Control
Developer: Exponent Inc., USA

Adding a derived credential from a smart card to an NFC-enabled phone enables the phone’s use for physical access control. This third pilot derives a secure credential from a government-issued Personal Identity Verification (PIV) card to the handset. It can then be used for access to Federal facilities in place of the card. The mobile implementation increases convenience and facilitates challenges such as a lost/stolen card or temporary credentials for non-PIV card holders. The project leverages the Opacity protocol to establish encrypted communications and authenticate a holder of a derived credential.

All three projects using mobile devices for digital identity are currently underway, according to Colin Wallis, executive director, Kantara Initiative.

“The basis for each project is a unique re-configuration of emerging next generation standards and specifications delivered through mobile devices, like smart phones,” says Wallis. “The trend of leveraging the ubiquitous mobile device for digital identity solution continues to ramp worldwide.”

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