This session (at the DigitalID World conference) was entirely conversational which is great to listen to but hard to summarize. Phil Becker, the moderator, is doing a terrific job of keeping the flow going.

Now he’s pushing on Microsoft as having the worst reputation on which to build trust relationships. The Microsoft guy replies that they’re trying to do all the right things, that Palladium lets the user control her/his own privacy, and Media Player 9 asks you out of the box how you want to set your privacy settings. (I’ve already written too much today about Palladium, but touting the settings screen of Media Player is really pretty lame, even as part of a list of steps Microsoft has taken. If Microsoft really wanted to do the right thing, it would support standards and independent authentication systems.)

An audience member asks: Can I delete my Passport identity from the Microsoft database if I want to? The Microsoft guy replies Yes (I think that’s what he said), but points out that deleting an ID raises a whole new set of issues such as: How do you recreate an identity you deleted by mistake? (Why not just put up a bunch of warnings to make sure you’re not deleting it by mistake?)

An audience member says that the biggest thing eroding consumer trust is spam because we have the sense that our personal information is being picked up and used. This doesn’t seem right to me. Sure, spam means that your email address is being shopped, but the spam is so random that it’s clear the spammers know so little about who I am that I feel my time has been invaded but not my privacy.

Audience member: Does Microsoft get value from Passport? Microsoft’s answer: It enables Web services; MSN needs an authentication service; Microsoft sells more servers because of it.

Good question, and it was a crisp, blunt answer; Microsofties are usually really likeable. Yet the answer didn’t convince me that there are no other reasons why Microsoft wants to be in the identity management business. The reply was short, of course, so maybe there’s more to be said. Nevertheless, Microsoft getting into the trust business is a new definition of chutzpah. That they don’t see this is continually surprising for a company so savvy about customers.

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Categories: Uncategorized dw