The California State University is developing and enabling a federated identity management architecture and set of services. This architecture and these services include interlocking technical and policy components that facilitate the management of electronic identities for individuals affiliated with the CSU.

The Identity and Access Management Initiative (IAM), formerly the Secure Identity Management Infrastructure (SIMI), includes efforts at the campus and system to establish the identity authentication and authorization processes necessary to allow students, faculty and staff to easily access courses, to share resources and to conduct research across networked information systems.

Benefits:

• IAM will improve the secure integration of information technology services across the CSU, support and enhance learning, and improve administrative efficiency.
• IAM will serve as a statewide and national model of federated identity management infrastructure.
• IAM will enable secure transactions among educational, business and government partners, while protecting personal privacy.

Goals:

• To facilitate the coordinated development of a IAM implementation on each CSU campus
• To provide a common set of goals, tools, information and analysis to campuses to assist in their IAM implementations
• To identify and implement a federated IAM that operates across the 23 CSU campuses
• To facilitate the support and maintenance of CSU IAM implementations in line with continuing technology and policy developments