Vienna-based digital ID startup waIt.id has some ideas about organizations should go about designing and implementing decentralized identity systems and digital wallets.
The “Decentralized Identity Playbook” begins by discussing the evolution of digital identity from the era of silos, where data was fragmented and controlled by individual service providers, to the rise of federated identity managed by large platforms like Facebook and Google. These earlier paradigms have certain limitations, including privacy issues, dependence on central authorities, and frequent data breaches, the report argues. Decentralized identity is proferred as the next step, allowing users to control their own data through digital wallets, enhancing privacy, security, and user experience.
The Playbook outlines the core concepts and technologies of decentralized identity. It explains the functioning of decentralized identity through a “Trust Triangle” involving issuers, holders, and verifiers of digital credentials. The credentials are stored in digital wallets and can be securely shared with others.
The document discusses the role of blockchain technology in creating trust registries that verify the provenance, authenticity, and integrity of identity data. It also addresses the challenges of using blockchains, such as costs, scalability, privacy concerns, and regulatory compliance.
Market trends and regulatory developments are identified as key drivers for adopting decentralized identity. The Playbook notes that regulations, particularly in the European Union with the eIDAS2 regulation, are encouraging the widespread adoption of ID wallets. These regulations require governments to provide ID wallets and digital credentials to citizens and mandate businesses to accept these credentials.
For organizations looking to implement decentralized identity, the Playbook suggests a five-step approach: identifying opportunities and risks, selecting and prioritizing use cases, defining requirements, deciding between building or buying solutions, and launching and expanding implementations. It recommends starting with low-risk, high-reward use cases to gain initial buy-in and build operational capacity. And it advocates for an iterative development process, beginning with pilot projects and gradually expanding to more complex use cases as the organization gains experience.
In terms of technology, the playbook advises using open source solutions to quickly build and experiment with decentralized identity applications. It provides guidance on setting up issuers, verifiers, and wallets using walt.id’s open-source APIs. The Playbook includes checklists for defining technical requirements and evaluating vendors, helping organizations select solutions that align with their business needs and regulatory requirements.
Founded in 2021, waIt.id is an early-stage startup that has received backing from Speedinvest, through a pre-seed funding round. The company is currently offering its own open source identity and wallet infrastructure platform.
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June 5, 2024 – by Cass Kennedy
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