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The UK’s recently launched GOV.UK Verify service relies on a novel federated approach for digital identity verification. Accredited private companies are tasked with verifying the identities of individuals to enable them to access various government services and portals. The private identity providers can draw on a number of public and private databases to validate users’ identities to a given level of identity assurance. The paper provides an overview of the GOV.UK Verify approach to identity verification. It describes the government’s motivations for developing such a system; the standards, principles, and governance arrangements that underpin it; and how the identity proofing and verification works in practice. It considers the expansion of the Verify model for other government and private sector uses and discusses the exclusion, privacy, and liability risks associated with the use of the system. Finally, the paper highlights important lessons for other countries seeking to develop similar systems for digital access.

Replication is one of the main principles of the scientific method. In the physical sciences, new knowledge is often not considered valid until the original study has been replicated in other labs and the original results are not refuted Replication will either improve confidence in our research findings or identify important boundary conditions. Replications also enhance various scientific processes and offer methodical and educational improvements. The purpose of this panel is twofold. First, to explore the opportunities for scientific development that replication research enables by reflecting on the experiences of encouraging, doing, and publishing replication studies. Second, to explore the various challenges that replication research raises about its value to individual scholars as well as to our collective understanding of phenomena within the information systems field.

Executive summary 1. This submission responds questions 8–10, and draws on my experiences with the Open Policy–Making (OPM) process associated with the data sharing provisions that then formed part of the Digital Economy Bill. It also draws on my experiences as a member of the OPM “Quality Assurance” group for the analysis of responses to the consultation about the proposal. 2. The evidence presents my own views on the issues and not those of members of the QA Group. Nevertheless it is inspired by, and reflects on, conversations amongst the group. 3. I am supportive of the use of the OPM process for developing policy but identify significant operational concerns with the way the resulting consultation on the proposals was undertaken and analysed. 4. I make a series of suggestions for addressing these concerns.

Executive summary 1. This submission responds to a key section of the inquiry from the perspective of information systems: the social study of information and communications technologies. It focuses on the role of technology when addressing Questions 1–3 on creating a good law There are, however, also implications for Questions 6 and 7 (on the role of technology). 2. For questions 1–3, the submission draws on research that questions the idea of technology–neutral laws1 and argues instead that technological issues should not be left for codes of practice, regulations and statutory instruments. This because apparently neutral technological decisions can, in fact, have a significant impact on the way a law is implemented and, as such, should be subject to proper, detailed scrutiny. In particular, these decisions can be such a key part of the proposed legislation that they should be subject to more scrutiny than codes of practice and statutory instruments typically receive.

In this paper we present empirical work detailing the engagement practices of a large FLOSS project, the Digital Business Ecosystem (DBE). In common with many other FLOSS projects, the DBE project focused on the development of infrastructural software components. Infrastructures and FLOSS software exhibit multiplicity: as objects they both change and stay the same. Whilst the implications of multiplicity with respect to infrastructure have been well-documented, with respect to FLOSS, they remain under-explored. Through examining how the DBE engaged new participants we were able to explore the nature of the FLOSS software object by asking the implied question: engagement with what? We draw on recent analysis by Law and Singleton to show how the innovative yet non-existent potentiality of the DBE was as significant to engagement as its steadily growing codebase. We argue that acknowledging the materiality and immateriality of the FLOSS software object has important consequences for management of, and engagement with, FLOSS projects.

This briefing paper describes an approach to testing anonymised data prior to online release, in order to minimise the possibility of jigsaw identification or disclosure from the data together with supplementary data. A research challenge was posed to students of three universities, who were able to test a data release. Their progress enabled statisticians to understand the vulnerabilities of the anonymised data in more detail, and to act in order to contain them. In this way, transparency and privacy remain compatible.

This report outlines the current state of the LSE's research into the UK Government's identity card proposals and provides an assessment of developments since the publication of our first report in June 2005. The first section of this document outlines developments since our first report. The second assesses planning dynamics and contradictions in the government's case. The third discusses questions about the scheme that remain unanswered. The fourth recommends some ways forward.

This paper explores the interpretative flexibility of ERP systems through the study of a project to implement a hosted system for the Central Accounting Department of a large multinational. The paper presents intensive case study data around the decision to implement the system and analyses it in terms of the interpretative flexibility of the system. The paper questions the extent to which technological features of the new system influence the perceived flexibility of the system.

Presented at the Subject Centre Annual Conference, Networking and collaboration: supporting learning and teaching

Woolgar, Steve Virtual Society? Technology, Cyberbole, Reality Oxford University Press 2002 360 pp. £14.39 (paperback)

This paper is based on a panel presented at ECIS 2003 that sought to explore the extent of diversity in practice in PhD programmes within AIS region 2. It presents respondents from six European countries: Germany, Norway, Italy, the United Kingdom, Spain, and the Netherlands. The participants address questions about the nature of their PhD programme in terms of such factors as admission, funding, style of dissertation, format of examination, employment prospects. Whilst some patterns exist amongst the experiences, diversity is still considerable. The paper concludes with a discussion of the impact of this evidence for the global field of information systems.