Constellation Research, a Silicon Valley-based research firm specializing in disruptive technology, is singing the praises of the FIDO Alliance. The firm has issued a new update on the consortium now that FIDO has submitted its standards for approval from the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C).
In a statement, Constellation calls FIDO “the most important Identity Management (IdM) consortium in an industry that has seen many associations over many years,” and credits its success in large part to “a radically clear mission: Take the smartphones and devices most of us are intimately connected to and use the built-in cryptography to authenticate users to services.” Constellation goes on to argue that by focusing on setting standards for devices rather than how user accounts are managed, FIDO has succeeded where the Federated Identity movement failed in working toward more sophisticated password replacements. And with more than 230 members, FIDO is in a position from which its specifications carry real weight and can help to shape the industry.
Now that FIDO has submitted its specifications to W3C, it has “made good on its longstanding promise to steadily evolve from proprietary protocols to free and open standards for authentication” that help to push the industry forward in a way that rewards those at the forefront and thus incentivizes the rest.
It’s high praise, but it comes from a real basis, with FIDO having made great strides in its few years in existence. With smartphone authentication playing an increasingly prominent role in everyday life, and the emergence of the Internet of Things, the FIDO Alliance’s importance looks like to grow over the next several years.
Follow Us