ABSTRACT
In this chapter, I aim to give a brief overview of what identity management is at the moment, and how it reached this stage. I examine the concept of identity in some detail, because of its position as the “raw material” of identity management, and then look at the application of identity-related data to functions of authentication, authorization, and provisioning. I chart the evolution of identity management from an enterprise to an interenterprise concern, and conclude by looking at where ideas of “user centric” identity might lead identity management in the near future.
