[Web4lib] Single-Sign-On (SSO) Authentication: a NISO Webinar

[Cynthia Hodgson]

Single-Sign-On (SSO) Authentication: a NISO Webinar

When: Wednesday, February 11

Time: 1:30 – 2:30 p.m. EST

ABOUT THE WEBINAR

This year NISO has launched a Chair's Initiative—a project of the chair 
of NISO's Board of Directors, focusing on a specific issue that would 
benefit from study and the development of a research study, recommended 
practice, standard, or similar. Oliver Pesch (Chair, NISO Board of 
Directors, and Chief Strategist, EBSCO Information Services) has 
identified user authentication as the issue that he would like to see 
NISO address, specifically the question of perfecting single-sign-on 
(SSO): achieving seamless item-level linking through single sign-on 
authentication technologies in a networked information environment.

To kick off the initiative, NISO will be holding a webinar on "SSO 
Authentication: Understanding the Pieces of the Puzzle." Accessing 
information in a networked environment has been a reality for most user 
communities for over a decade. With the advent of hosted aggregated full 
text databases and the proliferation of e-journals and e-books, a user's 
search for information takes him or her to a number of different online 
hosts and platforms. When those information resources are commercial 
products, each platform requires the user to be authenticated, and as a 
result, that user may have a different identity on each platform. Like a 
puzzle, the problem of user authentication has many pieces—institutional 
affiliation; authentication method; various discovery and content 
provider platforms; the impact of crossing over and using different 
sources, search engines, computers, or locations... the list goes on and 
on. And even when we start to understand all those pieces, we are still 
left with the problem of putting them together—trying to make them fit 
in order to see the big picture and solve the puzzle. This event will 
aim to look at how the theory behind a pure technical implementation is 
broken and why so that we can then take that next step of asking, "How 
can we make this better?"

AGENDA

The webinar will feature speakers providing three different perspectives:

-- Library Perspective: How does SSO authentication fit into libraries 
and libraries' service to their patrons? Provided by /Adam Chandler, 
Coordinator, Service Design Group, Digital Library and Information 
Technologies, Cornell University Library/

-- Authentication Tools Perspective: How are authentication 
tools/software expanding into SSO authentication? What are 
Athens/OpenAthens experiences/views on trends both in the UK and 
internationally. What are broader trends in Access and Identity 
Management technology and standards and potential implications? Provided 
by /Keith Dixon, Access & Identity Management, Eduserv/

-- Content Provider Perspective: When authentication fails, the 
opportunity to reach the user -- and for the user to access the 
publisher or content provider's resource—is lost. Learn more about just 
how big a problem this and how seamless sign-on can help. Speaker TBA.

The webinar will provide attendees with ample opportunity for questions 
during the event and will post the questions asked during the event and 
their answers on the NISO website following the webinar.


REGISTRATION

For more information and to register visit: 
http://www.niso.org/news/events/2009/authentication09/

The webinar is $79 for NISO and NASIG members and $99 for non-members in 
the U.S. and Canada. Check the website for student rates and 
international rates.


Cynthia Hodgson
NISO Technical Editor Consultant
National Information Standards Organization
Email: chodgson at niso.org <mailto:chodgson at niso.org>
Phone: 301-654-2512