Federation Connected Services
Federation Connected Services

For Higher Education

Unlocking the full potential of Australian higher education

Delivering a connected and protected high education sector, for world-class education and research.

The Australian Access Federation brings the sector together as one trusted network. It allows students, researchers and staff to reach the information, data, facilities and collaborators they need – using the identity they already have.

The result is a sector that’s stronger together. Institutions can sit alongside global players, researchers can work across borders and disciplines, and students can learn without limits.

Security above all else

Cybersecurity starts with trusted access.

Australian universities are regular targets for cyber attacks, and what’s at stake goes beyond systems. It’s research data, intellectual property, and the personal information of students and staff.

Federated access helps protect all of it. Services rely on identities managed and verified by each user’s home institution, so you know the people getting in are who they say they are, without everyone juggling yet another separate account.

For AAF, cybersecurity is about protecting people, knowledge, and the research and education universities exist to advance.

What it is worth to the sector

An independent analysis by Lateral Economics found AAF delivers Australian higher education $58 million in benefits a year, against $6.8 million in costs - a net benefit of $51 million annually.*

Here’s where that value comes from:

  • Universities and research organisations save $8–17 million a year in IT staffing and account management.
  • Students save $14–32 million worth of time a year through easier access to journals, eBooks and learning resources.
  • Researchers and teachers save $5–8 million a year, while the sector avoids $1–6 million in duplicated research activity.
  • Further savings come from reduced legal and administrative costs, plus flow-on benefits like improved collaboration.

*Central case modelled by Lateral Economics, with a benefit–cost ratio of 8.5, ranging from 5.4 in a conservative scenario to 12.3 in an optimistic one.

Benefits at a glance

Done well, federated access streamlines processes, strengthens security and helps to advance essential research and education. Here's where it makes the biggest difference.

  • Connected globally, and ready for what's next:

    Through international trust networks like eduGAIN, Australian universities can connect their communities to thousands of research and education services worldwide, building on the same trust foundation as the digital credentials and AI-enabled services still to come.

     

  • A gateway to Australia's research infrastructure

    Federated access removes the barriers between researchers and the national platforms, data collections, facilities and collaboration tools they need.

    It also makes it easier for researchers, teaching staff and professional staff to work together across institutions – from joint research to shared teaching programs.

  • Collaboration without the boundaries

    A single login procedure makes it easier for researchers, teaching staff and professional staff to work together across institutions – from joint research to shared teaching programs, without every collaboration starting from scratch.

     

  • Stronger security, built in

    Authentication stays with the institution, so existing controls (MFA, password policies, account lifecycle management) apply consistently across every connected service, while access decisions stay linked to trusted institutional identity sources.

     

  • Collaboration without the boundaries

    Only the minimum information needed to access a service is shared. Personal information isn’t scattered across dozens of providers, so institutions stay in control of what’s shared, with whom, and why.

  • Governance and compliance, made easier

    Every access event traces back to a real institutional identity, giving your team a clear, auditable record when compliance and governance reporting come up – without extra manual tracking.

Services

Explore the AAF services working behind the scenes to connect people, identities and infrastructure right across the sector:

  • Federation

    The trust framework behind it all. How institutions and services connect through a single, trusted identity.

     

  • eduGAIN

    Extends trusted access to research and education institutions, organisations and communities worldwide.

  • Australian ORCID Consortium

    A globally unique, persistent identifier for every researcher, connected through the federation you already trust.

     

     

Interested in learning more?

Get in touch to talk through what federated access could look like for your university and explore how to get connected.

Get in touch

See the technology in action.

Explore our projects and see how AAF is working with the sector on what’s next – from sovereign Trust and Identity Australia to a national PID strategy.

Explore projects