Identity-Enabling GÉANT2 Research Project Participant Receives Award
SimpleSAMLphp, developed by UNINETT in the context of eduGAIN, recognised at Identity Deployment of the Year Awards 2008
Monday 6 October 2008, Cambridge, UK: The innovation of the GÉANT2 research project, eduGAIN, which allows the secure sharing of identity data, has been highlighted by the recognition of one its major components, known as SimpleSAMLphp, at the Identity Deployment of the Year Awards (IDDY) 2008. The prestigious IDDY awards, held in September in Anaheim, California, recognise the best enterprise and user-driven identity-enabled applications in the global marketplace today.
eduGAIN is a GÉANT2 research activity that enables the safe, secure transfer of authentication and authorisation data between federations and allows the user seamless access to information wherever they are. This research is working towards establishing boundary-free access across the European research area, where the multiple regional research and education networks and the high bandwidth backbone network, GÉANT2, all act as a seamless resource. In order to make this possible, interoperable systems for roaming, for verifying users' identities and associated rights or privileges (authentication), and granting access to resources (authorisation), are required, both in the network and at the service level.
A component of eduGAIN, SimpleSAMLphp, is a joint research project between the Norwegian national research and education network, UNINETT and the pan-European research and education network, GÉANT2. It was initiated and developed by UNINETT through the GÉANT2 programme and as a successful open source project, several external parties have contributed to improve the software. SimpleSAMLphp is a platform for quick implementation of emerging standards or identity-enabled proof-of concept (POC) applications. It is available in 15 languages and is designed to be easily installed, requires no configuration and will run on any operating system. SimpleSAMLphp received the Emerging Application IDDY Award at this year’s event. All IDDY Award nominations are evaluated based on criteria that include the benefits the applications deliver to users and organisations and how the solution may successfully address identity issues such as reducing identity theft, meeting regulatory requirements or providing users with increased security and privacy protection.
“We are thrilled to receive an award for the work with simpleSAMLphp," says Andreas Åkre Solberg, Project Co-ordinator. "It really demonstrates the importance of simple, robust and flexible open source projects both within the research and education sector and the wider business world.”
“GÉANT2’s research activities are working to create many innovative solutions to allow the European research area to maximise its potential,” commented Dai Davis, General Manager of DANTE, operator of GÉANT2. “With the constant threat of identity theft, this award has recognised that eduGAIN and simpleSAMLphp will help provide an accessible solution to this serious problem, allowing researchers across to globe to continue to safely and securely collaborate on cutting-edge projects, wherever they are working.”
More on the IDDY Awards can be found at http://www.projectliberty.org/liberty/news_events/iddy_awards
Contact details
Chris Measures/Clodagh Boyle
Rainier PR (on behalf of DANTE)
+44 (0)20 7494 6570
dante@rainierpr.co.uk
Helen Martindale
DANTE
Direct: +44 (0)1223 371 328
Mobile: +44 (0)7823 538090
helen.martindale@dante.org.uk
