Browser-based attribute-exchange protocols enable users of normal web browsers to conveniently send attributes, such as authentication or demographic data, to web sites. This is also called federated identity. Such protocols might become very common and almost mandatory in general consumer scenarios over the next few years. Several product and standards proposals have been made, most notably Microsoft Passport, OASIS SAML, and the Liberty Alliance V1 specifications. However, none of the current proposals -- by statements of the proposers themselves -- addresses the full functionality for a general consumer scenario. We propose a protocol BBAE that addresses the missing issues. It has been fully specified with existing standards elements and prototyped, and we present an initial security analysis. We also discuss how it can be used as a step forward in existing standardization processes.
By: Birgit Pfitzmann and Michael Waidner
Published in: RZ3455 in 2002
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