FAIRFAX, Va., July 9 /PRNewswire/ -- The Federation for Identity and Cross-Credentialing Systems(TM) (FiXs), a public-private partnership dedicated to building and deploying a secure, interoperable identity and cross-credentialing network, today announced the 3rd Annual FiXs West Coast Conference will be held July 31-August 1 at the Hyatt Regency Monterey in Monterey, California. This two-day conference and exhibition will bring together private and public sector stakeholders who are developing, implementing and maintaining global identity management systems. Robert Lentz, deputy assistant secretary of defense for information and identity assurance, U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), will provide the opening keynote address. Mr. Lentz has managed the Defense-wide Information Assurance (IA) Program, which plans, monitors, coordinates and integrates IA activities across the DoD, and recently was appointed to serve as deputy assistant secretary of defense in June 2007.

Other keynotes and conference sessions featuring leading experts from the healthcare, financial services, public safety and aerospace communities include:

-- Securing Global Business Networks through Federation presented by David Miller, chief security officer, Covisint -- Key Success Factors for Federated Identity Management: Frontline Experience, a panel discussion with participants from Wells Fargo, SRA, the State of Colorado and DSA, Inc. -- Identity Management Program Update: DoD Perspectives presented by Mary Dixon, director, and Mark Breckenridge, deputy director, Defense Manpower Data Center, DoD -- Cross-Credentialing for the Contractor Community: The SPOT Federation Strategy, presented by LTC Richard Faulkner, project manager, contractor accountability mission, Army Materiel Command, and Gary Motsek, assistant deputy undersecretary of defense for logistics and materiel readiness, Office of Program Support (ODYSD-L&MR), DoD -- Federated Models for Improving National Healthcare, a panel discussion with participants from BearingPoint, Northrop Grumman Information Technology (IT), Covisint and EDS -- London 2012: Federated Credentialing for Secure Access Control presented by Kent Schneider, vice president, Global Business Development, Northrop Grumman IT -- Reducing Risk and Improving Security With Federated Solutions, a panel discussion with participants from Cisco, 3FACTOR, Ellipson Data and Wave Systems -- Moving Towards Enterprise Solutions with HSPD-12 presented by David Temoshok, director, identity policy and management, Office of Governmentwide Policy, General Services Administration and Brian Kitzmiller, delivery executive, EDS -- Best Practices for Federated Programs: Technology, Policy and Resources, a panel discussion with participants from Lockheed Martin, Little River Management Group, SuperCom and WidePoint -- Closing Plenary Session -- Strategies for Identity Management on the International Stage, a panel discussion with participants from ActivIdentity, Motorola, Certipath and Northrop Grumman IT

"We anticipate a tremendous amount of insight will be gained through the dynamic discussions and learning opportunities with this group of experts," said Michael Mestrovich, president of FiXs. "Each year we strive to strike a balance between public and private sector topics to demonstrate the synergies and excellence found in both. This year's speakers and participants take this annual program to a new level."

Additional conference breakout sessions will cover a range of current topics. Among those, an overview of the award-winning cross-credentialing system being implemented by FiXs, DoD and industry identity management partners, as well as strategies to deliver secure, interoperable employee identification systems to enable more trusted working and information-sharing environments.

For additional details on conference sessions and featured speakers, please visit: http://www.fixs.org/. Members of the press can register to attend the conference by contacting Leslie Jones at leslie.jones@fixs.org or calling 703-591-9255.

About FiXs

Founded in 2004 and headquartered in Fairfax, Virginia, The Federation for Identity and Cross-Credentialing Systems (FiXs) is a coalition of government contractors, commercial companies and not-for-profit organizations whose mission is to establish and maintain a worldwide, interoperable identity and cross-credentialing network built on security, privacy, trust, standard operating rules, policies and technical standards. The FiXs network verifies and authenticates the identity of industry personnel seeking to enter military installations, government-controlled areas and commercial sites tied to the network, providing a trusted mechanism for federated identity infrastructure within and between public and private sector organizations.

The coalition currently has 23 member companies, including systems integrators, financial institutions and other organizations that want to promote improved workforce protection and systems security for critical infrastructure markets. The U.S. Department of Defense and General Services Administration are participating government organizations.

The FiXs Network is an authorized link to the U.S. Department of Defense Cross-Credentialing Identification System (DCCIS) and a joint recipient of the 2005 FCW Events Government Solution Center Pioneer Award for "Successful Public/Private Sector Partnership," representing a premier example of a program managed collaboratively by government and non-government partners that tangibly improved government operations. For more information, visit http://www.fixs.org/.

CONTACT: Courtney Jewell, cjewell@extensiongroup.com, or Suzy Bauter,
sbauter@extensiongroup.com, both of Extension Group, +1-703-234-7815, for The
Federation for Identity and Cross-Credentialing Systems

Web site: http://www.fixs.org/