Hardware Based ID Exchange for Social Networks

Convener & Notes-taker: David Brown

Technology Discussed/Considered:

Hardware Tokens and Mobile phone applications for transferring contact data between users.

Discussion notes:

Hardware ID Tokens for Social Networking: Some observations from Poken’s experience

User needs
 * Authentication (a web 1.0 problem)
 * Bank login
 * Corporate VPN
 * Exchange of IDs (a web 2.0 problem)
 * Lets meet on facebook, etc.
 * Portable contacts / open social
 * Price
 * Low cost hardware is possible

Anatomy of a token 2.0
 * Communicate between themselves
 * To transfer IDs
 * Process/Store
 * manage an ID securely
 * Record communicated IDs
 * Communicate to a computer/the Internet
 * Relate the Token IDs to identity card data

1) Communication between Tokens
 * Wireless?
 * WiFi, Bluetooth, IR – all have “crowded room” and parametization problems
 * RFID, NFC – passive/active problem
 * Physical connection?
 * Not user friendly
 * Mobile phone based?
 * Needs s/w install, fragmented hardware/OS market
 * Wireless (WiFi, Bluetooth, IR) - as above
 * Camera, QR code
 * Operator vs. manufacturer politics/conflicts

1) Communication between Tokens
 * The solution (according to Poken)
 * Needs a spontaneous data exchange solution designed for this purpose
 * Usability/ergonomics important for this specific human interaction
 * Wireless is most natural
 * Active/active
 * Small form factor & price

2) Process/Store
 * Low end processor
 * Can work around processor limitations to do 128bit encryption/authentication because data transfer siue is small
 * Store communicated IDs
 * FIFO store (eg. For last 64 contacts)

3) Communicate to a computer/Internet
 * USB works fine
 * Emulate USB mass storage
 * Computer provides:
 * Internet networking
 * TCP/IP, DNS
 * SSL over the internet
 * Web infrastructure provides:
 * Token ID to Identity cards data
 * Data portability, APIs
 * Future: OpenID providers, Higgins, etc.

Token 2.0 side features
 * Timelines
 * Parental control
 * If my child met them in the real world then they can friend them online
 * Low cost alternative for some Token 1.0 uses
 * Trust