Identity management refers to any process by which users log onto apps, websites, or other services and gain access to specific levels of data or technology. Identity Management can be applied in numerous scenarios, from personal use on personal accounts to using technology at work for work purposes.
An older and less secure identity management system has caused various global concerns, from data breaches and large-scale hacks to having people's sensitive data shared without their knowledge. This has led to tightened regulations regarding how such data should be collected, stored, and utilized.
Blockchain identity management solutions offer solutions for these issues by increasing security, efficiency, accuracy, and access. Blockchain solutions for identity management have quickly gained popularity as cost-effective yet secure ways of handling digital identity wallet. They enable instant verification of credentials stored within an application, while ID wallets give more control to individuals over their personal information.
What Is Identity Management?
The identity management framework comprises policies, processes, and technologies that ensure only authorized individuals can access information or technology services. Identity and access management systems constantly adapt to improve security and user experience.
What Is Blockchain?
A blockchain is an electronic ledger that records information across computers in a network. Each computer in the network holds its copy of an audit trail or digital log that tracks accounting entries; hacking or altering this record would make a blockchain system difficult because documents cannot be changed retroactively.
How Is Blockchain Technology Being Employed For Identity Management Purposes?
Blockchain technology enables identity information to be verified and audited instantly, making verification and auditing quick and painless. Before diving in and discovering blockchain identity management growth, purposes, one must understand how a blockchain operates.
Users don't need to fear third parties interfering with verification processes or providing sensitive data outside the verifier; their data are encrypted and securely stored solely within their apps, giving more excellent protection from fraud or identity theft.
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Digital Identity Management Systems And Their Limitations: Problems Exist In Current Solutions
Digital identities refer to all the online information about an individual or organization, including usernames, purchasing histories, ID numbers, and search histories. Most digital IDs are directly or indirectly tied to devices, apps, and services using centralized authority or decentralized systems.
Collection and storage of sensitive user privacy data may increase business risk due to global privacy laws like GDPR in Europe and the California Consumer Privacy Act in California. Both regulations govern interactions collecting personal information on EU citizens outside their region but outside Europe.
Management Of Multiple Login Accounts Can Be Cumbersome And Time-Consuming For Users
Central identity systems present another potential drawback: whenever someone registers with a website or app, they must create their account with a password. More data is stored online - the average person uses 100 passwords. Thus increasing security risks.
Poor Data Ownership And Control
Individuals find it challenging to access, complete control, or own their personally identifiable data with the current blockchain identity management industry; individuals do not know whether and how it was shared.
Official Identity Inaccessibility
One billion people cannot verify their identities. At the same time, an additional 1.7 billion adults worldwide do not bank with financial services, hindering enrollment into schools, jobs, or government services, among other problems. Without an identity document, these people often lack the tools required for registration as students, job searches, financial transactions with institutions, and accessing government services, which could all become impossible or severely restricted due to not having one available.
Digital Identity Blockchain
At Errna, we created our digital identity solutions blockchain as an efficient means to protect identities online.
- Faster: Other blockchain options were congested and took longer to finalize transactions than Ethereum.
- At That Time: There weren't many cost-effective options for making transactions.
- Customization: Our public, permissionless public Blockchain was developed explicitly for decentralized identity use cases to accommodate customers better.
- Priority: Our chain allows us to be treated as first-class applications; on other chains, however, this could put us in jeopardy of being preempted by other works in progress.
Errna's blockchain identity management review is the basis of trust by maintaining an accurate record of all verifiable DIDs, public cryptography keys, and invalidation registries.
Verifiable Credentials issued are stored outside the Errna chain in their holders' digital wallet apps along with cryptographic key pairs for privacy reasons. Only four data items appear on Errna chains: issuers' and holders' DIDs, Credential Schemas ("templates"), and Revocation Registries.
Digital Identity Blockchain Examples
Errna's blockchain solution for digital identity can be applied across industries in numerous ways. Here are just a few:
Secure Identity Verification
Blockchain technologies make identity verification instant and safe, providing instantaneous confirmation for various purposes like accessing government services or opening bank accounts. In contrast to relying on centralized verification service providers, identity verification using Blockchain is safer and protects against fraud or identity theft more effectively than its alternatives.
Health Records
Patients can create digital identities and manage them securely while healthcare providers verify and confirm patient medical records, leading to improved care while safeguarding data privacy.
Management Of Supply Chains
Digital identities based on Blockchain can be leveraged for tracking and managing supply chain data with greater transparency and enhanced security in mind. Supply chain managers can then use digital identities created for products they sell to verify product authenticity while protecting against fraudulent sales practices or counterfeit products. This method also prevents bogus sales practices, such as falsifying supplier invoices.
Read More: Unlocking the Power of Blockchain: The Surprising Benefits it Brings to Digital Identities!
What Role Can Decentralized Identifiers And Verifiable Credentials Play In Identity Management Through Blockchains?
Decentralized Identifiers
Most of us rely on digital identities such as email addresses, usernames, and passwords to authenticate ourselves online - this presents several risks. Here are a few drawbacks of using such digital identifiers as they verify our identities online.
- A provider can remove you from their site or application at any point.
- These identifiers do not belong to you or under your direct control; instead, they share and track information with third parties and display advertisements for you while browsing online.
- They can often be stored on centralized identifier systems vulnerable to cyber-attacks and data breaches.
Decentralized Identifiers (DIDs) are an ideal solution to these challenges. Used to login and gain entry to apps and websites, decentralized identifiers consist of globally unique letters and numbers, which can be stored safely within digital wallets for easy management and assigned to individuals, companies, or objects as a form of ID.
Here is an example of Errna DID.
Decentralized Identifiers: Benefits
- No one can eradicate DIDs from organizations and individuals.
- The owner can demonstrate they are under cryptographic control by producing evidence.
- Do not bring a wallet or personal identification documents in the bag.
- Secure, instantaneous connections between parties.
One can create DIDs to record as many interactions and relationships as desired.
Example
- DID 1: A gaming platform
- DID 2 Online Banking
- DID 3: Identity cards
- DID 4: Purchase from online shops
Verifiable Credentials (VCs)
Verifiable credentials are cryptographically protected versions of paper or digital certificates used to verify an individual's identity with organizations. Such documents include passports, government ID cards, and driver's licenses - these credentials serve to establish their authenticity with these organizations.
Multiple Verifiable Credentials may be associated with each DID number. These digital versions of signed credentials come from sources like driver's license departments. DID owners can store these credentials locally on their phones rather than relying solely on providers like Facebook or Google for security.
Blockchain Identity Solutions For Users: Benefits To Consider
Consent To Share Identity Data
Personal data cannot be disclosed without first receiving explicit approval from individuals, with users required to grant unauthorized access each time data requests are made. Data minimization with blockchain-based systems enables data minimization - users only share parts of their credentials required by verifiers, such as location. Zero-knowledge proofs provide another privacy feature available through Blockchain that allows people to prove claims without disclosing personal information; for example, someone could verify they're at least 18 when purchasing alcohol without divulging date of birth details.
Secure Global ID
The personal information of every DID user is encrypted secure access on their mobile phone device and stored securely via blockchain technology. DIDs can then be shared with third parties who may verify themselves via DID verification.
Total Data Ownership And Management
Digital identities (DID) belong solely to those using sites and apps; no third party can gain access to or take away someone's DID without prior consent from that individual.
Data Storage
Decentralized systems of data storage provide more secure solutions by placing Verifiable Credentials and online identity data not on Blockchain network but on individual devices - this makes it much harder for malicious actors to gain access to large volumes of information; with centralized systems, a hacker could gain entry to 20 million accounts with just one click; with decentralized storage, the hacker would need to compromise 20 million devices first before accessing 20 million accounts simultaneously.
Accessible System
Anyone with at least a cell phone can join this global network.
Accelerated And Simplified Blockchain Identification
Know Your Customer (KYC), mandatory in financial institutions, requires individuals' DIDs for verification. DIDs can be linked with documents required for KYC, such as passports or driver's licenses, allowing verification. After successfully going through KYC for the first time, they may receive a VC verifying this process. They can then work with subsequent companies to eliminate costly KYC procedures.
Cryptography, combined with instant validation from issuing organizations (banks or driver's license agencies), allows for faster verification. Verifiers can quickly verify VC authenticity by checking Blockchain for issuer public key verification; no longer is direct contact necessary with Issuers.
Enhance The Online User Experience
DIDs enable users to quickly log onto websites and apps without the hassle of remembering multiple login accounts and passwords. Instead, users store their DIDs once on the Blockchain for internet-based services for authentication - Errna's web3 ID system provides such authorization capabilities, allowing companies to verify users using private information from identity wallet applications like Errna.
Reduce Paper-Based Identification Management Requirements
Paper credentials can easily be compromised or falsified. Should someone lose their physical documents ID card, a lengthy process must occur at an office before receiving new digital documents issued with Verifiable Credentials; these digital documents reissue faster than traditional credentials while remaining more challenging to lose or falsify.
Why Personal Data Shouldn't Be Stored On Blockchain
Avoid including personally identifiable data on blockchains to avoid compliance and privacy laws such as GDPR's "right to forget."
Errna allows users to keep an organized list of Verifiable Credentials and DIDs without storing personally identifying data; credentials are stored securely within your wallet rather than on any blockchain database.
Blockchain Identity Management Is The Future
Market Research Future's indicates that by 2030, the value of the Blockchain Identity Market will have reached $17,81 billion and increased by 56.60% year over year since last year. Market expansion will benefit from government initiatives to develop blockchain technology in developed and developing nations.
North America currently leads in blockchain identity management market share due to its highly developed infrastructure and technological innovations, with merchants continuously seeking ways to protect data. Digitalization across industries such as healthcare and retail is driving much of this expansion. Blockchain identity management companies offer one effective solution to combating cyber-attacks and data breaches.
Conclusion:
An Identity and Access Management framework entails policies and technologies that ensure only those authorized have access to certain information or technology resources.