NIST Teams with Think Tanks to Develop Digital ID Guidelines for State Benefit Programs

The U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) will collaborate with two think tanks to adapt its digital identity guidelines for state and local benefits programs, the agency has announced. NIST will partner with the Digital Benefits Network at Georgetown University’s Beeck Center for Social Impact and Innovation, and with the nonprofit Center for Democracy and Technology. Together, they will develop voluntary resources to help public benefits program providers evaluate the necessary degree of authentication and identity proofing practices for their services.

The initiative is driven by the rise in fraud and cybersecurity threats observed during the distribution of pandemic-related benefits, which led many agencies to adopt digital identity verification methods.

To develop their digital identity resources, NIST and the think tanks will engage with a wide range of stakeholders, including federal partners, state benefit program administrators, state IT and cybersecurity leaders, digital identity experts, technologists, and advocates. Public workshops will also be held to gather feedback.

The Center for Democracy and Technology is a nonprofit organization that advocates for digital rights and promotes policies to protect privacy, security, and internet freedom. It focuses on ensuring that technology and internet use advance democratic values and human rights.

The Beeck Center for Social Impact and Innovation at Georgetown University, meanwhile, focuses on developing human-centered solutions to improve government services and drive social change. It works on projects that aim to create equitable and effective systems, particularly for vulnerable and underserved populations.

Commenting on the NIST partnership, Beeck Center Executive Director Lynn Overmann highlighted the collaboration’s potential benefits for end users of state benefits programs.

“By empowering state agencies with stronger implementation resources, it has the potential to increase security and privacy in benefits applications and systems, while also making the process more equitable for applicants and beneficiaries.”

NIST has shown increasing concern for digital ID and remote authentication in recent months, having launched a guideline for the implementation of passkeys in digital identity systems in April.

Source: StateScoop

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June 11, 2024 – by Cass Kennedy