SAFECOM and NCSWIC Encourage Public Safety to Adopt Trustmark Framework

Author: Identity, Credential, and Access Management (ICAM) Working Group

At their biannual meetings May 2 – 4, 2017, SAFECOM and the National Council of Statewide Interoperability Coordinators (NCSWIC) Executive Committees unanimously approved a position paper encouraging public safety agencies to adopt and leverage the Trustmark Framework. This represents a critical step by public safety officials to address key security concerns arising from an increasingly interconnected environment.

In 2016, SAFECOM and NCSWIC established the Identity, Credential, and Access Management (ICAM) Working Group to help address ICAM-related issues that impact emergency communications and information sharing. The ICAM Working Group quickly recognized that interoperability and scalability between ICAM solutions are critical for the future of secure information sharing within the public safety community. Prior to the creation of the work group, public safety leaders had called for a nationwide federated ICAM solution. The ICAM Working Group determined that encouraging public safety agencies to adopt and leverage the Trustmark Framework, which aids interoperability between ICAM solutions, would be their first step in the community’s broader effort to achieve a nationwide federated ICAM solution. Trustmark Framework Position Paper which was accepted by the Joint SAFECOM and NCSWIC Technology Policy Committee before being submitted to the Executive Committees further explains the need for the Trustmark Framework and the benefits of widespread adoption for public safety.

In addition to the Trustmark Framework Position Paper, the first suite of products developed by the ICAM Working Group includes the following informational resources to aid the public safety community better understand the Trustmark Framework and ICAM more generally — “Trustmark Framework Tri-fold Brochure”, “ICAM 101 Executive Briefing”, and “ICAM Reference Guide”. 

Trustmark Framework Position Paper: Encourages the public safety community to leverage and adopt the Trustmark Framework in effort to achieve a federated ICAM solution.

Trustmark Framework Tri-fold Brochure: Provides background and supplemental information on the Trustmark Framework.

ICAM 101 Executive Briefing: Two-page high-level ICAM overview for public safety officials and decision-makers.

ICAM Reference Guide: Collection of resources and information on core principles and critical components related to ICAM, the Trustmark Framework, and other federal and government sponsored ICAM initiatives. The Reference Guide will be updated periodically with pertinent information, resources, and emerging ICAM trends.

Visit the SAFECOM website to learn more about the ICAM Working Group, ICAM, and the Trustmark Framework: https://www.dhs.gov/safecom/icam-resources