News

Following feedback before and during the Internet2 Technology Exchange, the Seamless Access program is reviewing the permissible use of the stored Identity Provider (IdP) preference information when using some of the SeamlessAccess.org integration models (see our “Getting Started” page for more information about the different integration models). What we realized is that in its current form, authorized Service Providers (SPs) using the advanced integration model may be able to access stored IdP choices before a user logs into that SP’s service.

SeamlessAccess.org is a service designed to help streamline the online access experience for researchers using scholarly collaboration tools, information resources, and shared research infrastructure. This is the monthly update for January 2020, where we catch up on the latest activities within SeamlessAccess.org. Upcoming Conference Sessions ALA Midwinter (January 24-28, 2020) Jason Griffey (Director of Strategic Initiatives, NISO) will share the lessons being learned to date from the beta testing of SeamlessAccess, the best practices and policies developed by the existing working groups, and describe what libraries and librarians need to know in order to deliver a simpler, privacy-preserving access experience for users.

This guide is for non-technical people who want to understand how attribute release enables secure and privacy-preserving access to online library resources using federated identity management. If you first want to read up on what federated identity management is, you can find a basic introduction here. What are attributes? Attributes contain information about an end user that are passed to a publisher or service provider after authentication. Think of a name, email address etc.

Taking the findings of the RA21 initiative to the next level, SeamlessAccess.org intends to support a streamlined federated authentication experience when using scholarly collaboration tools, information resources, and shared research infrastructure. The service will promote digital authentication leveraging an existing single-sign-on infrastructure through one’s home institution, while maintaining an environment that protects personal data and privacy. The service aims to enable simple, trusted use of scholarly resources and services anytime, anywhere, and on any device.