Blockchain Case Studies: Verifiable credentials/Digital Identity

Verifiable credentials and digital identity are increasingly important in the digital world, especially with the growing need for secure, privacy-preserving, and user-controlled identity management systems.

Verifiable Credentials : Verifiable credentials(VC) are digital representations of information (credentials) that can be cryptographically verified. They allow users to prove certain facts about themselves, such as their age, education, or citizenship, without revealing unnecessary personal information.

VC Key Features:

• Tamper-Proof: The credentials are secured on the blockchain, making them immutable and tamper-resistant.
• Privacy-Preserving: Users can share only the necessary information without exposing their entire identity.
• User-Controlled: Individuals have control over their credentials and can choose when and with whom to share them.

How Blockchain Supports Verifiable Credentials and Digital Identity

·  Decentralized Identity Networks: Blockchain platforms like Sovrin, uPort, and Microsoft’s Azure AD Verifiable Credentials enable the creation of decentralized identity networks. These networks allow individuals to register and control their identities on the blockchain, ensuring privacy and security.

·  Smart Contracts: Smart contracts on the blockchain can automate the verification of credentials, making the process efficient and secure. For example, a university could issue a digital diploma as a verifiable credential that a graduate can share with potential employers.

·  Zero-Knowledge Proofs: Some blockchain implementations use zero-knowledge proofs to allow the verification of credentials without revealing the underlying data. This is particularly useful for privacy-preserving applications, like proving age without disclosing a birthdate.

Real-World Applications

1.     Education: Universities and educational institutions use blockchain to issue digital diplomas and certificates as verifiable credentials. These credentials can be easily shared with employers or other institutions and verified instantly.

2.     Government Services: Governments are exploring blockchain-based digital identities to allow citizens to access services like voting, social security, and healthcare without the need for multiple forms of identification.

3.     Financial Services: Banks and financial institutions use blockchain-based digital identities to comply with Know Your Customer (KYC) regulations, ensuring that customers are who they claim to be while protecting their privacy.

4.     Healthcare: Blockchain enables patients to control their medical records, sharing them with healthcare providers as verifiable credentials. This ensures accurate, timely, and secure access to medical information.

5.     Travel and Border Control: Blockchain-based digital identities can simplify cross-border travel by allowing travelers to share verifiable credentials with customs and immigration authorities, reducing the need for physical documents.

Verifiable credentials/SSI Blockchain Tech Stack

A Verifiable Credentials and Self-Sovereign Identity (SSI) blockchain tech stack is a combination of technologies and protocols that enable the creation, management, and verification of digital identities and credentials in a decentralized and user-controlled manner. Blockchains provide the decentralized infrastructure necessary for managing DIDs, VCs, and public keys. They ensure the integrity and immutability of identity data and credentials.

Hyperledger Indy/Aries/Anoncreds : Hyperledger Indy and Hyperledger Aries are two key projects within the Hyperledger ecosystem, designed specifically for decentralized identity and verifiable credentials. They provide the foundational components and tools necessary to build self-sovereign identity (SSI) solutions.

Hyperledger Identus : Hyperledger Identus provides components to develop decentralized identity solutions that adhere to widely recognized self-sovereign identity (SSI) standards.

Polygon ID : Polygon ID enables organizations on one side to issue Verifiable Credentials about users, and organizations on the other side to verify those VCs via a suite of tools created for each member of the SSI ecosystem.

Hedera Decentralized identifiers and managed credentials : The Hedera Consensus Service, using the open DID specification developed by the W3C DID working group, offers developers building on Hedera the ability to manage credentials through their lifecycle in a secure, standards-based and privacy respecting manner. 

Ethereum ERC-5851: On-Chain Verifiable Credentials : Interface for contracts that manage verifiable claims and identifiers as Soulbound tokens. https://eips.ethereum.org/EIPS/eip-5851 

Sovrin Foundation’s governance framework, Trust over IP (ToIP) stack for digital identity governance.

VC & DID are w3c credentials

https://www.w3.org/TR/vc-data-model-2.0/

https://www.w3.org/TR/did-core/

Case Studies : 

1.    British Columbia /Ontario : The Verifiable Organizations Network (VON) started by the governments of British Columbia, Ontario, and Canada.  So far digital IDs for 529,000 companies and 1.4 million credentials issued.

https://www.hyperledger.org/case-studies/bc-aims-to-cut-government-red-tape-with-hyperledger-indy

2. MemberPass : CULedger worked with decentralized identity organization, Evernym, to build an identification solution that was faster, simpler, and more secure with Hyperledger Indy—a distributed ledger software project that is interoperable with other blockchains or can be used on its own to power the decentralization of identity. By implementing Hyperledger Indy, MemberPass™ (formerly called MyCUID) offers a permanent and portable digital identity that reduces member friction and injects more trust in digital interactions within credit unions.

• Vendor onboarding cycle time cut from 60 days to 3 days
• For buyers: 50% less cost to verify and maintain a supplier’s information
• For sellers: much faster time to first sale

https://www.hyperledger.org/case-studies/culedger-case-study

3. Digiyatra : Digi Yatra is a Ministry of Civil Aviation, Govt. of India led initiative to make air traveller’s/ passenger’s journey seamless, hassle-free and Health-Risk-Free. The Digi Yatra process uses the single token of face biometrics to digitally validate the Identity, Travel, Health or any other data that is needed for the purpose of enabling air travel. The Solution is built on W3C standards using Self Sovereign Identity (SSI), Verifiable Credentials (VC), Decentralized Identifiers (DIDs) and uses a Distributed Ledger for decentralised layer of trust between the various participants of the ecosystem.  More than 4 million registered users.

4. Bhutan ID :  In 2023, Bhutan, a Himalayan nation of less than one million citizens, became the first country in the world to roll out a self-sovereign national digital ID (SSI) system which is now an inspiration for others hoping to build decentralized digital ID projects. eIDAS framework – the EU regulation drafted to establish standards for electronic identification and trust services – the NDI also meets international standards for digital ID interoperability, as well as other global and domestic standards.

https://www.bhutanndi.com

5. Indicio, SITA and Aruba Deliver Verifiable Credentials for Digital Travel

The Aruba HOP trial resulted in a 64% reduction of the manual entry of passport information into the ED card website, and had an overall 100% error-free clearance rate of participating travelers. Digital travel credentials create frictionless, accurate data verification while preserving data privacy at every touchpoint across the traveler’s journey 

https://indicio.tech/indicio-sita-and-aruba-deliver-verifiable-credentials-for-digital-travel/

Indeed, blockchain technology is transforming the landscape of digital identity and credential management by addressing many of the limitations and vulnerabilities of traditional systems. Blockchain's impact on digital identity and credential management is profound, offering solutions that are more secure, efficient, and user-centric than traditional methods. As the technology matures and adoption increases, we can expect to see even more innovative applications that empower individuals and organizations to manage and verify identities with greater confidence and ease.

#digitalidentity #blockchain #verifiablecredentials #ssi #did #hyperledger