Information Cards: A Solution to Login Problems?

CNET reports that “a group including Equifax, Google, Microsoft, Novell, Oracle, and PayPal, plus nine leaders in the technology community announced on Monday the creation of the Information Card Foundation (ICF) with the goal of increasing awareness of the use of electronic ID cards on the Internet, and encouraging interoperability in business around new standards.” Information cards “would allow customers to bypass typing in user names and passwords,” which would reduce phishing attacks.

ICF hopes to create a system with realtime encrypted connections between a user, a provider, and a trusted reliant party – all of whom must be synced for the transaction to go through. Such a system may be more secure and less time-consuming than our present username-and-password-dominated login methods. Yet another example of the free market creating new ideas that may solve privacy issues while making the web a better user experience.