Episode 134: OIDC-A: Securing AI Agent Identity

Traditional OAuth and OpenID Connect protocols are inadequate to secure AI agents acting on behalf of users across complex organizational boundaries. The OpenID Connect for Agents (OIDC-A) draft introduces cryptographic attestation of agent integrity, standardized representation of delegation relationships, and attribute-based authorization. OIDC-A represents a fundamental shift from treating AI agents as simple applications to recognizing them as distinct entities requiring purpose-built identity and access management solutions.

#Speakers

• Host: Mike Schwartz, Founder/CEO Gluu
• Guest: Subramanya Nagabhushanaradhya, Machine Learning Engineer Dylog
• Guest: Tobin South, Research Fellow, Stanford University

#Homework

• OIDC A Proposal
• Strata Blog on Agentic Identity
• Blog on OIDC A
• Authenticated Delegation of Authority for AI Agents, video of talk by Tobin South.

#Takeaways

• Given the chaotic sprawl of the AI identity landscape, the OpenID Artificial Intelligence Identity Management Community Group is trying to identify patterns and best practices. Here are a few they'll have to look for:
• Agentic Identity: Is an AI agent uniquely identified by a URI, DID, URN or something else?
• Agentic Authentication: Should agents use Dynamic Client Registration, Attestation Based Client Authentication ("ABC Authn"), or something else--see DCR skeptic Dick Hardt's recent suggestion: https://gluu.co/no-dcr ?
• Agentic Federation: What will "Delegation Credentials" look like? How can domains encode obligations and restrictions, not just access? What's the trust model to scale not just the tools but the rules?
• Agentic Authorization: JWTs are input to policies which unlock capabilities. But how do you even make policies about tokens in multiple domains? See: https://gluu.co/multi-token-authz