8 Customer Experience Considerations

Ergonomics of Human-System Interaction — Part 11: Usability: Definitions and Concepts [ISO/IEC9241-11] defines usability as the “extent to which a system, product or service can be used by specified users to achieve specified goals with effectiveness, efficiency and satisfaction in a specified context of use.” This definition focuses on users, goals, and the context of use as the key elements necessary for achieving effectiveness, efficiency, and satisfaction. A holistic approach that considers these key elements is necessary to achieve usability.

From a usability perspective, one of the major potential benefits of federated identity systems is to address the problem of user fatigue that is associated with managing multiple authenticators. While this has historically been a problem with usernames and passwords, the increasing need for users to manage many authenticators — whether physical or digital — presents a usability challenge.

As stated in Sec. 8.1 of [SP800-63A] and Sec. 8.1 of [SP800-63B], overall user experience is critical to the success of digital identity systems. This is especially true for federated identity systems, as federation is a less familiar user interaction paradigm for many users. Users’ prior authentication experiences may influence their expectations.

The overall user experience with federated identity systems should be as smooth and easy as possible for legitimate users. This can be accomplished by following usability standards (e.g., the ISO 25060 series of standards) and established best practices for user interaction design.

Guidelines and considerations are described from the users’ perspective.

Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 [Section508] was enacted to eliminate barriers in information technology and require federal agencies to make electronic and information technology accessible to people with disabilities. While these guidelines do not directly assert requirements from Section 508, identity service providers are expected to comply with Section 508 provisions. Beyond compliance with Section 508, federal agencies and their service providers are generally expected to design services and systems with the experiences of people with disabilities in mind to ensure that accessibility is prioritized throughout identity system life cycles.

A primary aspect of customer experience is anticipating the needs of the user population and offering federation in a manner that is suitable for that population. In assessing customer experience risks and challenges, IdPs and RPs should consider the overall user population that is served by their federated identity service and deploy solutions that support their needs and capabilities.

Federation is a highly technical process. There is very little process exposed to the end user that directly impacts their customer experience and is not already addressed by authentication and identity proofing customer experience considerations. There are two notable exceptions: 1) the process for selecting and remembering the IdP and 2) handling errors and communication between the IdP and the RP help desks. In addition to what is discussed here, the IdP needs to consider the customer experience related to identity proofing, attribute validation, and enrollment (see Sec. 8.2 of [SP800-63A]) and considerations concerning authenticators (see Sec. 8.2 of [SP800-63B]).