Inside ID’s debut event offers top-notch education
01 January, 2004
category: Biometrics, Library
From identity theft to Homeland Security, the first ever Inside ID conference and trade show covered a true range of ID bases in three days last month in Washington, D.C.
Called a “Mega Show” and created by industry pioneer Ben Miller, the conference attracted a broad spectrum of companies and speakers.
“We wanted to help define and center the evolution of the emerging discipline of identity management,” said Mr. Miller. “Our goal was to educate at both the basic and advanced levels, bringing buyers and sellers together, providing a broad-based forum for interaction between diverse constituencies, and providing a gathering place for standards groups and associations around the world.”
Mr. Miller called Inside ID a Mega Show “because there were dedicated sections of the exhibit hall branded to reflect the major tools used in modern identification solutions,” he said. These so-called “shows within the show” included a focus on critical areas of identity management including digital identity, card technology, biometrics, and document security.
The conference featured presentations by more than 70 industry practitioners covering policy, best practices, legislation and technology. The exhibit hall featured more than 100 companies showing their latest digital security wares, integrated identity management systems, cryptographic systems, document security, smart cards, biometrics, and more.
“Inside ID was designed to help you get a handle on your modern day ID challenges and find solutions for them,” said Mr. Miller. “We had all the major ID technologies, practices, and services under one roof.”
At the front of the exhibit hall were industry specific “portal booths” staffed by Inside ID’s partnering organizations: The International Security, Trust and Privacy Alliance; the International Biometric Industry Association; the Document Security Alliance; the Biometric Consortium; the Advanced Card Technology Association of Canada; and the Smart Card Alliance.
Seminar tracks covered the state of identity management, biometric technology, digital identity models, homeland security applications, card technology, policy and privacy, identity theft, identity management in the Department of Defense, databases and proofing, credentialing frameworks, identity in financial systems, and document security.
Mr. Miller is no stranger to conferences such as his new Inside ID event. He founded the CardTech/SecurTech Conference in 1990, running all aspects of the event and helping it to grow to a 10,000 attendee and 1,000-exhibit booth event. In 1998, he sold that company to Thomson Corporation and continued to serve as the conference’s Chair until 2002. In September 1996, he received the Distinguished Achievement Award from the Smart Card Forum (now Smart Card Alliance) and was honored with a similar distinction by the Advanced Card Technology Association of Canada the following year. He was elected to the Smart Card Hall of Fame in Helsinki in 1998.
The dates for next year’s Inside ID conference have not yet been announced but it is certain to build upon the success of this first inaugural event and become one of the premiere educational opportunities for the advanced identity markets.