Establishing Digital Identity Trust in a Connected World

Jalen Milner emphasizes the importance of digital identity for establishing trust in a connected world.

### Establishing Trust through Digital Identity in a Connected World
* 🌐 Jalen Milner, lead identity at the IOTA Foundation, discusses the **importance of establishing trust** between people, organizations, and IoT devices through digital identity as part of the **Tangle Identity project**.
* 💻 In today's interconnected world, especially highlighted by the pandemic, there is a pressing need for **reliable online identification**, as many individuals manage **over a hundred accounts** with unique usernames and passwords.
* 🔒 Current online identification methods are inadequate, leading to issues such as **identity fraud and general distrust**, which could worsen as IoT technology becomes more prevalent in smart cities.
* 📜 Digital identity aims to create a **secure online profile** using public-private key encryption, allowing users to **prove their identity without relying solely on passwords**, and facilitating the sharing of **verifiable information through signed digital certificates**.
* 🤝 The concept of self-sovereign identity emphasizes **user control over their identity and data sharing**, minimizing unnecessary information disclosure while ensuring **interoperability across platforms**.
* 🌍 The Tangle Identity project utilizes a **public, feeless distributed ledger technology**, IOTA, to implement this digital identity standard, **enhancing security and enabling seamless integration with payment systems**.
* 🚀 Progress on the project is promising, with ongoing development of the **DID standard and verifiable credentials**, aiming for **completion by the end of the year**, while also exploring further improvements and standardization of **identity communications**.
* 💬 Milner encourages engagement with the Tangle working group and highlights the **availability of resources for those interested in learning more about digital identity and its applications in various sectors**.

Establishing Trust between People, Organizations and Things

Eclipse Foundation

Introduction and Problem Statement: The Need for Online Identification

Jalen Milner introduces himself and the Tangle Identity project, focusing on establishing trust online.

He outlines the presentation's structure: problem, solution (digital identity), implementation details, and the Tangle E working group.

He highlights the increased interconnectedness and reliance on the internet, particularly due to remote work and social interactions.

The current system's shortcomings are explained: numerous accounts with usernames and passwords, unreliable social media identities, and difficulty verifying company identities online.

The lack of verifiable data leads to poor security, fraud, and general distrust online, especially concerning IoT devices and smart cities.

Digital Identity as a Solution: Self-Sovereign Identity and Standards

Digital identity is proposed as a solution: a single online profile using public-private key encryption for authentication.

Verifiable credentials (signed digital certificates) are introduced as a way to share verifiable information about the identity.

Self-sovereign identity principles are discussed, emphasizing user control over identity creation, updates, deletion, and data sharing.

The Decentralized Identifiers (DIDs) and Verifiable Credentials standards from the W3C are mentioned, highlighting their widespread adoption.

The three roles in digital identity (issuer, holder, verifier) are explained using the example of a digital driver's license.

An example of using digital identity for bank account signup, highlighting improved security and data privacy compared to traditional methods.

An IoT example is presented: using digital identity for a heavily loaded truck to optimize traffic flow and reduce carbon emissions.

Tangle Identity Implementation and Technology

Tangle Identity is presented as an implementation of digital identity standards on IOTA, a feeless, public, permissionless distributed ledger technology.

Technical aspects are mentioned: development in Rust, integration with IOTA Stronghold for enhanced security, and the combination of identity with payments.

The project's progress is discussed, with expected completion by the end of the year and future plans for improvements.

IOTA's technology is compared to blockchain, highlighting its advantages in terms of cost, throughput, and parallelism.

The IOTA Foundation's role in development, partnerships, and transaction volume are mentioned.

The Tangle E working group and its projects (Tangle Identity and Tangle Marketplace) are briefly described.

Questions from the audience are answered regarding code availability, learning resources, challenges in local government implementation, and the currency used in the Tangle EE marketplace.