Open Identity Exchange
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The Open Identity Exchange (OIX) was a non-profit organization that worked to accelerate the adoption of services based on . It was also technology-agnostic and operated collaboratively across both the and As of August 31st, 2024, the organization had ceased operations.
History
Genesis
Shortly after coming into office, the asked the (GSA) how to leverage open identity technologies to help the American public interact more easily and efficiently with federal websites, such as those of the (NIH), the (SSA), and the (IRS).
At the 2009 , the GSA sought to build a public/private partnership with the(OIDF) and the(ICF) to craft a workable identity information framework that would establish the legal and policy precedents needed to establish trust for transactions.
This partnership eventually developed a trust framework model. Further meetings were held at the Internet Identity Workshop in November 2009, resulting in OIDF and ICF forming a joint steering committee. The committee's task was to study the best implementation options for the newly created framework.
Foundation
The US recommended the formation of a non-profit corporation, the Open Identity Exchange (OIX). In January 2010, the OIDF and ICF approved grants to fund the creation of the Open Identity Exchange. and were all members of either OIDF or ICF and agreed to become founding members of OIX.
Trust
To trust that the Identity Provider is delivering accurate data, Identity Providers must ensure that the Relying Party is legitimate (i.e., not a hacker or phisher). While direct trust agreements between relying parties and identity providers are a common solution, they become unmanageable at the scale of the Internet.
OIXnet
In 2014, OIX established the OIXnet trust registry, a global also announced plans to register all companies self-certifying conformance to OpenID Connect via the OpenID Certification Program on OIXnet.
Purpose
OIXnet is an official, online, and publicly accessible repository of documents and information relating to identity systems and participants, referred to as a registry. It functions as an official and centralised source of such documents and information, much like a government-operated recorder of deeds. Individuals and entities can register documents and information with the OIXnet registry to provide notice of their contents to the public. Members of the public seeking access to such documents or information can go to that single authoritative location to find them.
The OIXnet registry is designed to provide a single, comprehensive and authoritative location where documents and information relating to a specific purpose, such as identity systems, can be safely stored to notify others of certain facts. From this location, such documents and information can be accessed by interested stakeholders seeking such information.
Early participants
OIXnet was launched in 2015. The OpenID Foundation was the first registrant, registering the initial set of organisations, including NRI, and Ping Identity, certifying permission to Connect. Additional registrations were added to OIXnet throughout 2015 and 2016.
Status
The registry was in a pilot phase as of 2016, registering new and diverse trust frameworks and communities of interest.
International Chapters
OIX developed a chapter's policy in 2015 that allows regional OIX chapters to be established. In 2016, the OIX United Kingdom Chapter was approved by OIX board and launched.
Government relations
The OIX board met within 2011 to discuss the envisioned in the NSTIC strategy.
The UK government's Cabinet Office joined the OIX at the board level, as it began the work on its Identity Assurance , which is now
In 2015, the States of Jersey commissioned an OIX Discovery project to explore how the knowledge, expertise, and components of one of these models, the UK's GOV.UK Verify identity assurance scheme, could be leveraged to provide a cost-effective solution to meet Jersey’s requirements.
OIX UK Europe Chapter
At the beginning of 2015, the Cabinet Office requested Open Identity Exchange to begin exploring the legal, business, and pragmatic considerations of creating a self-sustaining UK 'chapter' of the Open Identity Exchange. Up until that point, OIX UK operated as an independent UK entity, able to administer 'directed funding' from member organisations. It had received a series of grants from the UK Cabinet Office, that were used for the collaboratively funded projects.
White Papers
The OIX White Papers deliver joint research to examine a wide range of challenges facing the open identity market and to provide possible solutions. They are written by experts in the fields of technology, particularly open identity.