MySpace announced Monday that it supports the OpenID single sign-on method. OpenID enables users to skip traditional authentication procedures by registering on any site with an OpenID "identity provider" (IdP), then using that login information to connect to any other website which supports the decentralized single sign-on system. OpenID can also be used with Windows CardSpace, which is part of .NET Framework version 3.0.

Thus, MySpace users will be able to port their hard-worked public profile data to other Web sites. As they update profile items such as biographical facts, personal interest lists, friend contacts, photos, videos and text comments, they will be also updated on all the connected websites. Users have complete control over these external links and can drop a website at any moment so they are not updated anymore.

In January, Yahoo! announced support for OpenID, which means all active registered Yahoo! users are able to use their login for any other sites supporting the framework. Yahoo apparently waited for the OpenID 2.0 specification, which was finalized in December 2007, to support the standard due to security concerns in previous versions. Reportedly, not even the latest version is entirely secure.

The main security concern is that a malicious relying party may forward the end user to a bogus identity provider authentication page asking that end user to input their credentials. The malicious party could then have access to the end user's account with the identity provider.

The OpenID Foundation announced in February that Google, IBM, Microsoft, VeriSign and Yahoo were onboard for the single sign-on identity system, becoming the first corporate members. Other members include executive director Bill Washburn, Scott Kveton from Vidoop, David Recordon from Six Apart, Dick Hardt from Sxip Identity, Martin Atkins from Independent, Artur Bergman from Wikia, Johannes Ernst from NetMesh and Drummond Reed from Parity Communications.