Today’s Microsoft Announcement About Identity

Okay, this is pretty big news:

Top executives from Microsoft Corp. today outlined a vision for secure and easy “anywhere access” and committed to working with the industry to evolve networks, protection and identity to achieve that vision for customers. In their keynote address at the RSA Conference 2007, Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates and Chief Research and Strategy Officer Craig Mundie discussed how the industry can further advance efforts around trustworthy computing to enable people to access, share and use corporate and personal information without fear that it will be compromised, stolen or exploited.

But this isn’t Passport 2.0, my friends!

On the heels of the Windows CardSpace general availability launch in Windows Vista, Microsoft demonstrated momentum with industry partners that are working to apply this technology to help consumers realize a more confident online experience. This includes the announcement of collaboration on use of Windows CardSpace with the OpenID 2.0 specification. Through the support of the WS-Trust-based Windows CardSpace experience, consumers can take advantage of increased security against phishing attacks without adding complexity to their identity management experience. Also at the conference, Wachovia Corp., Arcot Systems Inc. and Corillian Corp. showcased a proof of concept demonstration using Windows CardSpace to deliver a simpler and safer online banking experience for customers.

Microsoft is embracing OpenID?! This is huge!

[tags]openid, identity, cardspace, rsa, security[/tags]