Identosphere 210: IIW XXXIX is a wrap • EBSI Ecosystem Survey • Hoppae Announces Seed Round • No Central Database of EU Citizens
Weekly edition of the latest Self Sovereign Identity related news, development, upcoming events, and thoughtful commentary from the blog-o-sphere. Thanks for your continued support.
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Coming Up
[Berlin] European Cloud and Identity Conference Call for Proposals Open to 01/31
[Amsterdam] Plugfest #1 | Digital Wallets in Action — FIDES 11/7
We are organizing with a wallet plugfest with FIDES Findynet
Previously Listed Events
[London] Future Identity Festival London 11/11-12
[New Orleans] Hybrid Identity Protection Conference (HIP Conf) 11/13-14
[Poland] Trusted Economy Forum 11/26-27
[Paris] TRUSTECH 2024 12/3-5
Shared Signals Interop Event at Gartner's IAM Summit 12/9-11
[Boston] Internet2 Technology Exchange 2024 12/9-13
[Cape Town] DID:Unconf Africa 2/18-20
[Zurich] Digital Identity Unconference Europe - Ecosystems 3/4-5
Hiring
Self-Sovereign Identity / Blockchain Developer DSR Corporation
[London / Remote (US)] Notabene: Software to manage risk in crypto transactions
IIW Posts
We are all ready to begin IIWXXXIX and look forward to welcoming the largest number of participants to the circle ever! 2024-10-29 idworkshop
Musings of a Trust Architect: Has our SSI Ecosystem Become Morally Bankrupt? 2024-10-29 ; Christopher Allen; Blockchain Commons
Presented at IIWXXXIX Fall 2024 on October 29, 2024 by Christopher Allen
I speak not only in response to the argument last year at IIW that “SSI didn’t work” but also to underscore a graver issue: that perhaps in our pursuit of mainstream adoption we’ve sacrificed the very principles that set SSI apart. In a world increasingly threatened by authoritarian encroachments, with troubling examples growing by the day, we face the urgent need to protect freedom.
Standards Work
OpenID Presentations at October 2024 OpenID Workshop and IIW plus New Specifications ; Mike Jones; Self-issued.info
DIF Newsletter #45: Special Edition on DIDComm Formal Verification and IIW 39 Decentralized Identity Foundation
The findings position DIDComm as a rigorously verified protocol ready for widespread adoption in secure identity frameworks and data spaces. Dr. Carsten Stöcker, CEO of Spherity GmbH, highlights DIDComm's role in facilitating secure peer-to-peer communication, highlighting relevance to business-to-business (B2B) and machine-to-machine (M2M) communications.
[thread] I just read through your blog on improving privacy in DIDComm and the formal verification 2024-10-23 Kyle DH
Public Review Period for Proposed Implementer’s Draft of OpenID4VP Specification 2024-11-01 OpenID Foundation
Major changes: introduces Digital Credentials Query Language, transaction data mechanism, removes clientidscheme parameter
Public review period: November 1 - December 16, 2024 (45 days)
Voting period: December 17 - 24, 2024 (seven days)
mDL verification moving from theoretical to practical 2024-10 Biometric Update
The developer APIs implemented by both Apple and Google for digital ID credentials within their wallets has spurred states with legislation on the books to act, and Boyd suggests that continued advances in the ecosystem, such as the ISO/IEC 18013-7 standard for remote verification, will spur further launches and adoption.
[Research] Identification and Implementation of Suitable DID Methods for SSI Wallets in a Data Space 2024-09-23 Amadeus Darren Leander; TNO
The Dataspace Protocol, released by the International Data Spaces Association, aims to address interoperability issues among participants within and across different data spaces, complementing the IDS-RAM. This study explores the suitability of Decentralized Identifiers (DIDs) in a Self-Sovereign Identity (SSI) wallet for data spaces. It evaluates commonly supported DID methods from various IDS Connector implementations and SSI wallets.
[Research] vDID: Blockchain-Enabled Verifiable Decentralized Identity Management for Web 3.0 2024-06 Zhe Peng, Jiamin Deng, Shang Gao
First, we design a generic verifiable DID structure, which is capable of capturing and expressing the inherent relationships between different entities with high granularity. Second, we develop an identity verification scheme to support efficient integrity verification for identities and their relationships in the decentralized framework. We implement vDID and conduct experiments to evaluate the system performance. Experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of our proposed system.
Government
[Youtube] Panel Discussion: SSI Applications in Smart Digital Economies 2024-10-31 Bhutan NDI
In this panel session, we explore the transformative potential of self-sovereign identity (SSI) in reshaping digital interactions and transactions, as well as enhancing privacy, security, and user autonomy while driving innovation and efficiency in digital economies. We delve into the principles of SSI, which empower individuals to own and control their personal data, reducing reliance on centralized authorities.
EBSI Ecosystem Survey European Blockchain Services Infrastructure
Details on pilot projects over the last several years
Information about overall ecosystem status
Stakeholders' experience and satisfaction with EBSI services
Impact of transforming pilot projects into next-gen services (Report)
Innovating National Digital Identity: Bhutan's Visionary Approach Gistly
Practical Implementations and Future Roadmap:
Hybrid custodial wallets with guardianship features for technological inclusivity
Printed cryptographic QR codes for access in places without smartphones
Partnership with volunteer organizations to educate citizens about digital identity.
European
EU spokesman denied: European Commission does not plan a central database on the assets of EU citizens 2024-07-24 Focus
The European Commission has no intention of setting up a central database on the assets of EU citizens. It is true that the Commission is currently asking the European Parliament (!) carries out a study with a view to the practice of registering assets in the EU member states. This overview study only shows which mechanisms exist in the 27 Member States (mapping study). The Commission itself is not planning any activities based on the results of this study.
EUDI Wallets as a Service - EU Digital Identity Wallet powered by Talao Talao
Decentralized Identity Management and the European Identity Reform 2024-10-24 Panagiotis Rizomiliotis & Maristel Hairetaki ; link.springer.com
In this work, we present the advances in identity management and the paradigm shift from centralized to decentralized solutions. In this context, we introduce and analyze EUDI wallet, the European Commission’s proposal as it has been recently reported and agreed in the final eIDAS 2.0 document.
Company Stories
Introduction to Privado ID (prev. Polygon ID) Privado ID Documentation
Digital Farm Wallet wins Constellation Research SuperNova Award Indicio
TANZ’s Digital Farm Wallet uses Verifiable Credentials to create a data-sharing ecosystem for producers, growers, exporters, retailers & consumers. This allows farmers to hold data around emissions, land, water usage, and be able to share it directly and securely with reliant parties, removing the need for large databases or the need to manually keep sending the same information over and over again.
Simplifying decentralized identity systems for everyday use 2024-10-30 Mirko Zorz; Help Net Security
Carla Roncato, VP of Identity at WatchGuard Technologies, discusses how companies can balance privacy, security, and usability in digital identity systems. She emphasizes modern techniques like biometrics and passkeys to replace knowledge-based authentication methods and highlights the need for global standardization in decentralized identity solutions.
Hoppae Announces KRW 6 Billion Seed Investment 2024-10-29 MAEIL BUSINESS NEWSPAPER
Founded in 2022 by key developers, including CEO Shim Jae-hoon (formerly COO of COVUV)
Building a digital identification and authentication system based on its own patent technology, Digital Credit Express (DCX)
Serves as the director of the Technical Advisory Council (TAC) of OpenWallet Foundation to lead standardization of DID open-source technology
Hopae scores big seed investment to match ambitions in EU DID market 2024-10-30 Biometricupdate.com
“The size of the digital identity market is estimated at 600 trillion won in Europe alone, so it has great potential,” says Shim Jae-hoon, CEO of Hopae.
Martin Riedel and Rouven Heck Join idOS to Shape the Future of Decentralized Identity 2024-10-29 ; Idos Profile
We’re excited to welcome two influential figures in the web3 and identity space, Rouven Heck and Martin Riedel, to the idOS team!
Product
[youtube] Proven Auth Demonstration: Using Verifiable Credentials for Identity Access Management 2024-10-30
Indicio Foundations Team Lead Daniel Bluhm demonstrates how Proven Auth can allow your team to login to applications quickly and securely with Verifiable Credentials.
See how Verifiable Credentials can be easily implemented into existing systems, provide a quick, simple interface for users, and how they differ from traditional Identity and Access Management systems.
Use Cases
[health insurance] New Baby, New Headache: How Verifiable Digital Credentials Could Simplify Insurance Enrollment 2024-10-28 ; Wayne Chang; blog.spruceid.com
bring sanity to the chaos of adding a newborn to your health insurance—turning a paperwork nightmare into a seamless experience for new parents.
[brand management] Why Broken Links Are Costing You Brand Deals (And How to Fix It) 2024-10-28 ; Ebony Louis; developer.tbd.website
With this setup, all my links and contact info are stored in one place—owned and controlled by me. Even if a service that houses all my links goes down, my links will always be accessible because they’re not reliant on any external platforms to display them.
[education] What Is Self-Sovereign Identity, and Could It Impact Higher Education Cybersecurity? edtechmagazine.com
Advocates of SSI say the nascent philosophy would put personal data back in the hands of the people. But how realistic is that, and how far away is an actual solution?
Travel
Aruba, Indicio and SITA combine a DTC and IATA OneID for international flights indicio.tech
Thirty minutes from plane to beach. That’s the stress-free vision Aruba had for its tourist-driven economy. Now, thanks to a collaboration with SITA, a global leader in air travel IT, and Indicio, a global leader in decentralized identity, that vision is a reality.
The Travel Facilitator: Suresh Khadakbhavi, CEO, DigiYatra MSN 2024-10-04
When Suresh Khadakbhavi took over as CEO, DigiYatra was operational at only three airports— Bangalore, Varanasi, and Delhi. Today, it has expanded to 24 airports, with five more soon to join.
What’s in a Name - A Case for Verifiable Credentials www.identityfusion.com
Many businesses rely on generic identifiers like names and addresses to distinguish individuals
Individuals with similar personal information can lead to complications and confusion for businesses
What You Need to Know About Digital Identity & Biometrics Iata Knowledge Hub
IATA's Digital Identity and Biometrics Fundamentals training course covers essential models, forms, and features of digital identity and biometrics
Helps create reliable digital identities for passenger identification in air travel while respecting data protection and privacy requirements
Explores various methods for passengers to prove their identity and share it with stakeholders involved in One ID concept
Musings
I grew up on the web. The web grew up with me. 2024-10-24 ; Ben Werdmuller
Decentralized Web
How Decentralized Apps Can Make Everyday Tasks Easy 2024-10-29 ; Tania Chakraborty; developer.tbd.website
Ariton: Decentralized SuperApp platform for community building with Mini Apps (ariton.app)
Kin AI: Web5 AI personal companion with private, on-device data processing (App/Play Store)
BlockCore Wallet: Web5 non-custodial crypto wallet for DIDs, tokens & payments (docs.blockcore.io/wallet)
Beyond SSI
[AI Policy] Advancing the United States’ Leadership in Artificial Intelligence; Harnessing Artificial Intelligence to Fulfill National Security Objectives; and Fostering the Safety, Security, and Trustworthiness of Artificial Intelligence 2024-10-24 The White House
Policy Objectives:
Strengthen US AI ecosystem through partnership with industry, civil society, and academia
Provide safety and security guidance to AI developers and users
Assess and help mitigate risks of AI systems
[AI] Hello, I'm a zombie. What brings you here today? 2024-10-29 ; Stephen Wilson; Lockstep
Thought Experiment:
Start-up offers strangers as companions for children with no family experience or formal education
Companions are self-taught, super-intelligent but prone to hallucinations
Free service, but ethical concerns raised due to lack of understanding complex behaviors and emotions.
[privacy] Global leaders’ locations reportedly exposed by Strava fitness app www.scworld.com
Aside from shedding light on the location of a hotel where Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping held talks last year, bodyguards' Strava profiles also leaked the highly confidential movements of Jill Biden and Melania Trump.