AI-generated summary
Self-Sovereign Identity (SSI) is a form of digital identity where individuals or entities fully own and control their personal data. This means users decide what information to share, with whom, and under what conditions. SSI extends beyond natural persons to include legal entities and even objects, emphasizing user autonomy in managing identity information.
Christopher Allen, a key expert who coined the term, describes SSI as the fourth phase in the evolution of digital identity. The progression begins with centralized identity, controlled by a single authority; moves to federated identity, managed by multiple authorities (e.g., Microsoft’s Passport); then to user-centric identity, where individuals control their data across authorities without federation (e.g., OpenID, Facebook ID); and finally to self-sovereign identity, which grants individuals full control over their identities across any number of authorities. Allen’s framework, outlined in “The Path to Self-Sovereign Identity,” guides many ongoing projects.
Currently, various initiatives leverage blockchain technology to implement SSI. Notably, Spain and Europe recognize the Alastria protocol as a leading example. Another prominent project is GlobaliD, led by expert Greg Kidd, which is gaining significant traction. These efforts aim to empower users with secure, decentralized control over their digital identities.
The concept of digital identity will play a prominent role in the technological development of the future of money.
The term Self-Sovereign Identity refers to a type of digital identity where the user owns their data and has full control over it. In this way, the user decides what data they share with which third parties and on what terms.
Under the realm of sovereign identity, the user can be a natural or legal person, or an object.
Sovereign identity is, according to the expert in the field, Christopher Allen, the fourth phase in the evolution of digital identity, as explained in The Path to Self-Sovereign Identity. He is credited with coining the term Self-Sovereing Identity and many of the ongoing projects are guided by the 10 principles Allen formulates in his text.
In summary, and according to Allen, the phases of evolution are:
- Phase one: centralized identity (administrative control by a single authority or hierarchy)
- Phase two: federated identity (administrative control by multiple federated authorities). An example of this is Microsoft’s First Passport.
- Phase three: user-centric identity (individual or administrative control across multiple authorities without requiring federation) Example of this is the OpenID protocol or Facebook ID.
- Phase four: self-sovereign identity (individual control over any number of authorities).
There are currently multiple initiatives around sovereign digital identity, all of them making use of Blockchain technology. The sovereign digital identity protocol developed by Alastria is a benchmark in Spain and Europe.
Another initiative of great interest and that is showing a lot of traction is GlobaliD, led by our FTF expert, Greg Kidd. In this video, Greg explains what sovereign digital identity consists of:
CEO at globaliD