[INFRASTRUCTURE]: Enable user account creation and profiles

[gtsueng]

Issue Name

Enable user account creation and profiles

Issue Description

User accounts would be very helpful for improving user engagement, collecting user feedback, and improving the user experience (by allowing them to save their preferences, search history, etc.)

Create infrastructure that would allow for the creation of user accounts.

Requirements:

• It should leverage existing authentication system
  • E.g. Start with ORCID and GitHub
• Should not collect any personal user data beyond the bare minimum needed for authenticating (e.g. ORCID ids, Github usernames) and contact (no gender, preferred names, phone numbers, addresses, etc.).
• Must be able to store user site preference information
  • Example: prefers to search with AI-toggle off
  • Example: prefers landing page to be the Malaria disease page
  • Example: Interested in participating in user testing for the site
• Must be able to store search history (though it's not clear if this will be active or passive, or if we set limits as to the number of searches stored)

Issue Discussion

The overarching goal of this was discussed at the biweekly meeting dated 2025.10.28, though the discussion did not dive into the details.

Related WBS task

https://github.com/NIAID-Data-Ecosystem/nde-roadmap/issues/122

For internal use only. Assignee, please select the status of this issue

• Not yet started
• In progress
• Blocked
• Will not address

Status Description

No response

Request status check list

• This infrastructure improvement has yet to be discussed between NIAID, Scripps, Leidos
• This infrastructure improvement does not need to be discussed between NIAID, Scripps, Leidos
• This infrastructure improvement has been discussed/reported between NIAID, Scripps, Leidos
• This infrastructure improvement has been implemented locally to generate data for review
• This infrastructure improvement has been implemented on Dev
• This infrastructure improvement has been implemented on Dev and the results have been reviewed and approved for staging
• This infrastructure improvement has been implemented on Staging
• This infrastructure has been approved for Production
• This infrastructure has been implemented on Production