INTERNATIONAL: Internet Society Helps Lead New Global Identity Initiative

The Internet Society has joined with nearly 45 organizations from the global identity and Internet communities to launch the Kantara Initiative, a new organization formed to solve the harmonization and interoperability challenges that currently exist among identity-enabled enterprise, Web 2.0 and Web-based applications and services. J. Trent Adams, outreach specialist, trust & identity, Internet Society, has been elected chair of the Kantara Initiative Leadership Council.

The Internet Society''''s Trust and Identity initiative recognises that in order to be trusted, the Internet must provide channels for secure, reliable, private, communication between entities, which can be clearly authenticated in a mutually understood manner. The mechanisms that provide this level of assurance must support both the end-to-end nature of Internet architecture and reasonable means for entities to manage and protect their own identity details.

A public webcast on Wednesday, June, 24 at 8:00 am US PT (14:00 UTC) will provide an overview of Kantara Initiative including a review of goals, structure and opportunities for all members of the global identity community to participate in the organization. Registration and more information is available online.

More information on the Internet Society''''s Trust and Identity initiative can be found at: http://www.isoc.org/isoc/mission/initiative/trust.shtml

By the Internet Society