FAQs

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  • Why would anyone care for the Identity Assurance Framework since we already have NIST SP 800-63?
    Response: If it addresses other use cases than the US federal government: Yes
  • Is it true that identity assurance applies only to Identity Federation scenarios?
    Response: Identity Assurance has several connotations: LoA, the IAF, and the information security related identity assertion of a remote user. The LoA is an essential construct in federations (flat or somewhat hierarchical) to fight complexity. But any large system/organization can profit from LoA. The same is true for the IAF: It provides a policy for federations or large organizations.The identity assertion in the infosec-view is completely independent of federations.
  • Am I correct is assuming that identity assurance is relevant only for PKI-based authentication?
    Response: No.
  • I understand that identity assurance is about strong authentication, so Identity assurance = two-factor authentication, right?
    Response: No, LoA 1 and LoA 2 are included as well.
  • There are no publicly available Identity Assurance standards, correct?
  • Is Kantara Initiative’s Identity Assurance Framework a heavy, proprietary framework?
  • In order to use the Identity Assurance Framework, I need to either pay for it or join Kantara Initiative, correct?
  • I understand that the Identity Assurance Framework is only applicable to US Federal Government programs, is this so?
  • What's the difference between the Identity Assurance Framework, its related certification programs, and the Open Identity Exchange (OIX)?
  • Is the Kantara Initiative Identity Assurance Framework applicable to high security situations?
  • The Kantara Initiative Identity Assurance Framework doesn't appear to fit my situation exactly.  Can it be tailored to accommodate my specific requirements?
  • I currently have individual agreements between my organization and several other organizations so we can exchange personal information about our mutual clients.  Can the Kantara Initiative Identity Assurance Framework simplify my operations and help me expand my business?
  • I want to rely on a group of external organizations to check the veracity of certain attributes of an individual's identity before they become a client.  Can the Kantara Initiative Identity Assurance Framework help me?