IDDY Award nominations are evaluated based on criteria that include the benefits applications deliver to users and organizations; the ROI the application demonstrates; and how the solution may successfully address identity issues such as reducing identity theft, meeting regulatory requirements or providing users with increased security and privacy protection. The program highlights identity-enabled applications that leverage any of the secure, privacy-respecting and proven interoperable Liberty SAML 2.0 Federation, Liberty Web Services (ID-WSF), Liberty People Service and Liberty Advanced Client specifications.

Representatives from winning organizations will participate in the "Case Studies and Stories from IDDY Award Winners" panel discussion to be held from 12:20 - 1:10 on Tuesday, September 9 at CSO Magazine's Digital ID World 2008. All DIDW participants are welcome to attend the presentation with more information available at http://public.cxo.com/conferences/agenda.html?conferenceID=24

2008 Liberty Alliance IDDY Award Winners

Aetna - Aetna has received an IDDY Deployment Award for an externally hosted online provider portal used for linking healthcare providers with health plans. Working with NaviMedix, the portal includes a variety of tools including transactions and content hosted by Aetna with interfaces to third-party Internet Application Service Providers and Content Service Providers. The deployment was launched in the US in December 2007 and is currently utilized by healthcare providers in all 50 states.

-- Highlights - The application delivers seamless and secure single sign-on (SSO) capability into Aetna-hosted applications and identity-enabled transactions. This enables the use of applications without redevelopment, giving a common portal presentation to providers adding enablement of web service transactions within the federated context. Since deploying the application, Aetna has been able to increase its offerings of tools and features that help providers conduct simplified administrative transactions, reduce paper-based communications, and access clinical decision support tools. The solution allows for the quick roll-out of new applications and services throughout the provider network.

-- Technologies - The application leverages SAML 2.0 for browser-based SSO, DSML for downstream identity provisioning, and Web Services Security for authorization and signature of entitlements. Requests and responses using X.509 certificates are scheduled for implementation during 3Q of this year.

Citi - Citi's Global Transaction Services has received an IDDY Deployment Award for providing managed identity services that help institutional clients utilize digital credentials and signature technologies in a comprehensive and legally binding manner. Citi is both a Credential Service Provider and a Relying Party as defined in the Liberty Identity Assurance Framework (IAF). As a trusted financial services provider to the world's top corporations and governments in more than 100 countries, Citi is addressing identity challenges in establishing trust in B2B and B2G identity-enabled transactions by coupling rigorous internal processes with proven identity management technologies.

-- Highlights - The goal of managed identity services is to create value for Citi clients including: greater visibility into the actions of authorized end users and their role as defined by internal processes; control and governance over the access and activities of end users; and assurance of identity, non-repudiation and document integrity to mitigate risk associated with sensitive business processes when transacting with business partners.

-- Technologies - The identity-enabled services Citi provides are dependent on technologies spanning the web (HTTP/HTTPS), web services (SAML, WS-Security, SOAP), PKI (Certificate Authorities, X.509, PKCS#7), strong authentication technologies (HSM, KSM) records management and entitlement management (XACML), identity platforms (RDBMS, LDAP), document formats (PDF, XML) and development platforms (.NET, Java).

Deutsche Telekom AG - Deutsche Telekom AG has received a Multi-Protocol IDDY Award for its identity application designed to lower implementation barriers when it comes to the delivery of Online/IP-based services to consumers. Initially launched in 2002 and winner of the 2006 IDDY Award, the application has been steadily enhanced to offer multi-protocol capabilities for service provider interfaces as well as for authentication methods and automatic user identification. The application serves the requirements of the mass market for Online/IP-based consumer applications by providing fundamental functionalities such as Single Login, Automatic identification, Single Sign On and Single Logout.

-- Highlights - With Deutsche Telekom AG serving as an identity provider, the application is a key business enabler for offering Online/IP-based services to Deutsche Telekom AG customers. The application ensures easy implementation of consumer services and shortens the time-to-market for new service offerings. It allows quick and cost-efficient link-up with partners using the identity standard protocol that fits best and reduces the complexity of the IT-architecture. The application provides consumers with a unique and consistent user-interface that is easy-to-use, transparent and secure.

-- Technologies - With the goal of tying a wide variety of Online/IP-based consumer services together by means of a common identity management user experience and to provide scenario-focused login methods, the application currently supports SOAP/XML, Secure Token Service, ID-FF 1.2, SAML 2.0, HTTP Basic and HTTP Digest, as well as different authentication methods. The underlying architectural guidelines make it possible to integrate further IDM protocols with the latest enhancements moving to provide preliminary support for OpenID 1.1, OpenID 2.0 and Microsoft CardSpace.

UNINETT - has received an Emerging Application IDDY Award for SimpleSAMLphp, an open source lightweight implementation of several federation protocols written in PHP. Free to download and available in 15 languages, simpleSAMLphp is a platform for quick implementation of emerging standards or identity-enabled proof-of concept (POC) applications. The software implements Web SSO, and can be applied in any deployment where users need to be authenticated to a World Wide Web Service.

-- Highlights - The simpleSAMLphp core is widely used in production deployments, providing a platform for use where the path from POC to production does not need to be long. With simple installation, configuration and maintenance, users save time, resources and money. The flexible solution integrates with existing systems and makes it easy to incorporate new emerging standards. Features such as the User Consent module give users more control and knowledge about the exchange of personal data when conducting online identity-enabled transactions.

-- Technologies - SimpleSAMLphp supports identity protocols such as SAML 2.0, Shibboleth 1.3 and WS-Federation. Experimental functionality is ongoing with several other protocols including OpenID, A-Select and PAPI.

About the Liberty Alliance IDDY Award

The Liberty Alliance IDDY Award recognizes digital identity deployments and the up-and-coming identity-enabled applications that incorporate identity specifications and policy frameworks from Liberty Alliance. Previous IDDY Award winners are eBIZ.mobility, EduTech, Deutsche Telekom AG, The New Zealand Government, NTT Labs, Rearden Commerce and the UK Government Authentication Gateway. Judges for the 2008 award include Bob Bragdon, Publisher, CSO Magazine; Michael Barrett, CISO, PayPal, Inc.; Michelle Dennedy, CPO, Sun Microsystems; John Fontana, Senior Editor, Network World; Gerry Gebel, VP & Service Director, Identity and Privacy Strategies, Burton Group; Paul Madsen, Liberty Alliance Technology Expert Group and Identity Standards Researcher, NTT; Roger Sullivan, president of Liberty Alliance and vice president Oracle Identity Management; and Robin Wilton, Liberty Alliance Public Policy Expert Group and Corporate Architect, Sun Microsystems. More information about the IDDY including links to case studies detailing previous winning applications is available at http://projectliberty.org/liberty/news_events/iddy_awards

    CONTACT:

    Russ DeVeau
    Liberty Alliance
    508-487-6102 - Office
    908-251-1549 - Mobile
    russd AT projectliberty DOT org (no spaces)
    IM (Russ DeVeau): devcommruss

SOURCE Liberty Alliance

http://www.projectliberty.org

Aetna is one of the nation's leading diversified health care benefits companies, serving approximately 37.3 million people with information and resources to help them make better informed decisions about their health care. Aetna offers a broad range of traditional and consumer-directed health insurance products and related services, including medical, pharmacy, dental, behavioral health, group life and disability plans, and medical management capabilities and health care management services for Medicaid plans. Our customers include employer groups, individuals, college students, part-time and hourly workers, health plans, governmental units, government-sponsored plans, labor groups and expatriates. www.aetna.com

SOURCE: Aetna

Aetna
Media Contact:
Fred Laberge, 860-273-4788
labergear@aetna.com
or
Investor Contact:
Jeffrey A. Chaffkin, 860-273-7830
chaffkinj@aetna.com

Aetna has set a goal of having a minimum of 80 percent of its vendors offering benefits by 2010, and all vendors offering benefits by 2011. This action step, aimed to help reduce the number of working uninsured in America, is in keeping with the company's call and work toward the transformation of the American health care system.

"The actions we will be taking are meant to begin a dialogue with our vendors," said Joseph C. Black, Aetna's chief procurement officer. "We intend to increase awareness about the importance of health benefits, while increasing our own understanding of the issues impacting our significant vendor base. Our focus will not be on helping the primarily small businesses that are facing the challenge of providing health coverage. We want to work with them to find solutions."

While nearly 84 percent of Americans have some form of insurance, roughly 47 million, or one in six Americans, lack health coverage. Of the uninsured, nearly 60 percent work for small businesses. Research consistently shows that the uninsured:

-- Get less care

-- Use fewer preventive services

-- Fail to adhere to recommended treatments

And when the uninsured need to access care, it is at great cost - $10s of billions annually - which strains federal and state budgets and leads to higher premiums for the insured.

As a first step, the company will send letters to its suppliers and vendors notifying them of this initiative and asking them to inform Aetna if they presently offer benefits. The status of their contract will not be jeopardized by their answer, but Aetna does need to set a baseline and alert these business partners of our direction on this important social issue.

The company also will develop new contract language for future contracts, and will develop a business strategy to educate these employers about the range of benefits options available to them, both through Aetna and other carriers.

Williams notes that this initiative is new territory for Aetna, and the company is committed to sharing what it learns along the way as it executes toward this goal.

About Aetna

Aetna is one of the nation's leading diversified health care benefits companies, serving approximately 37.3 million people with information and resources to help them make better informed decisions about their health care. Aetna offers a broad range of traditional and consumer-directed health insurance products and related services, including medical, pharmacy, dental, behavioral health, group life and disability plans, and medical management capabilities and health care management services for Medicaid plans. Our customers include employer groups, individuals, college students, part-time and hourly workers, health plans, governmental units, government-sponsored plans, labor groups and expatriates. www.aetna.com.

SOURCE: Aetna

Aetna
Susan Millerick, 860-273-0536
MillerickS@Aetna.com

"I'm so honored to participate in this task force," said Dr. Wills. "It is tremendously important to raise people's awareness of stroke symptoms and risk factors, and what to do if you have them. This is especially true for African American people, because they often have risk factors that place them at greater danger for stroke."

Dr. Wills recalled the experiences of patients she encountered while practicing emergency medicine in Washington, D.C. "I treated a number of patients who had a stroke, but did not seek medical attention until hours, or even days after the onset of symptoms. Many people felt the symptoms were temporary and would just go away. But by delaying medical evaluation, they limited their treatment options."

The American Heart Association has called upon the African American community to join the fight against stroke through its Power to End Stroke campaign. The program is a grass-roots effort to engage communities through education and prevention. It is focused on the warning signs of stroke and necessity of quick treatment and serves to engage communities through its ambassador program.

The campaign seeks out community professionals, leaders, and volunteers to help educate and raise awareness by outreach to local workplaces, churches, community centers, and hospitals. Stroke kills nearly 157,000 people a year and is the No. 3 leading cause of death in the United States. That's about one of every 15 deaths. In fact, every three minutes, someone dies of stroke. The African American community is especially at danger, as African Americans have twice the risk of incidence than white people.

Dr. Wills serves the Maryland and District of Columbia markets as an Aetna medical director. She has been with Aetna for seven years, working in the company's patient management department.

Among her responsibilities, Dr. Wills supports ethnic and racial diversity activities in the market, as well as the development of high-performance provider initiatives with local university medical centers. She also works on Aetna's health literacy work group, which developed a multi-dimensional strategy to improve health literacy awareness.

Dr. Wills graduated from Spelman College and the Howard University College of Medicine, and is board-certified in emergency medicine. She is a member of The District of Columbia Medical Society, where she was appointed to the Medical Liability Reform Task Force and Professional Standards Committee.

Aetna provides and administers health benefits to approximately 1 million people in Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia.

Aetna is one of the nation's leading diversified health care benefits companies, serving approximately 37.3 million people with information and resources to help them make better informed decisions about their health care. Aetna offers a broad range of traditional and consumer-directed health insurance products and related services, including medical, pharmacy, dental, behavioral health, group life and disability plans, and medical management capabilities and health care management services for Medicaid plans. Our customers include employer groups, individuals, college students, part-time and hourly workers, health plans, governmental units, government-sponsored plans, labor groups and expatriates. www.aetna.com

SOURCE: Aetna

Aetna
Walt Cherniak, 410-691-1405
cherniakjrw@aetna.com