Microsoft meets vendors to discuss ID protocols

The work would help mitigate potential security risks, such as so-called "man-in-the-middle" attacks, where a hacker can intercept identity information as it's in transit to a Web site, officials said. Novell Inc. is also working with Microsoft on InfoCard Selector, a so-called "digital wallet" for handling identity information.

Microsoft's commitment to the Concordia project shows it has realized the importance of interoperability, said Graham Titterington, principal analyst at Ovum PLC.

"Microsoft has already come a long way in terms of 12 months ago," Titterington said. "It's not a surprising development as a year ago I think it would have been."

The meeting will take place on 26 June at Catalyst 2007, an enterprise IT conference in San Francisco.

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