BlocksInform
Polygon, a 2-layer scaling protocol for ethereum, launched a decentralised zero-awareness public identity solution nearly a year after it announced its development.
The Polygon ID service uses zero-knowledge proofs (ZK proofs) that use cryptographic techniques to allow users to verify their identity online without having their sensitive information passed or potentially stored with a third party.
Polygon Labs publicly released Polygon ID on March 1, almost 12 months after the project was officially launched in a closed-source environment.
The Polygon ID team was built to "resolve the question of digital confidence."
NET ZERO KNOWLEDGE IDENTITY 3.
The Polygon ID team is excited to announce 4 tools have been released in the #PolygonID Identity Infrastructure to build a more equitable internet that places identity at the center of it.
What about the future?https://t.co/h66KyDurJE pic.twitter.com/jTBbzBNVJk
— Polygon (@0xPolygon) March 1, 2023
“The difference between Polygon ID and most other decentralised identification frameworks is its implementation of zero-knowledge technology, enable users to verify their identity or other identifiers without necessarily disclosing sensitive information," said Polygon.
The public version introduces four new tools to the set of polygonal identification tools - sdk checker, issuer node, wallet sdk and wallet app - which will enable polygon designers to embed decentralised identity in their applications.
Users will be able to produce evidence of lack of knowledge using off-line credentials, such as passports, national identity cards or undergraduate degrees, to interact with smart contracts and check information about the channel.
"This means that offline data can now be used for chain checks with no confidence in the widely supported authenticated identity document format."
Polygon claims it’s also the first ZK-based digital ID tool that allows users to hold credentials locally on handheld devices such as smartphones, and that users will no longer need passwords:
“Passwordless logins exchange encrypted verifiable credentials by simply scanning a QR code or connecting to a desktop wallet. Organizations can benefit from enhanced security, user experience and productivity from their system administrators who do not spend time resetting passwords."
That's Polygon ID's co-founder, David Schwartz, says in a March 1 tweet that the product has been built "on the latest decentralised identity standards" that will help protect developers and users from unauthorized third-party access.
Polygon ID’s ZK-based technology enables developers to build solutions to allow users to store their personal information privately and securely while giving them full control over who has access to their data.
— David Schwartz (@davidsrz) March 1, 2023
"Providing identity in a way that the average consumer can use is the holy grail of digital ID adoption,” he explained in a separate press statement.
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Multiple projects have already committed to integrating Polygon ID upon launch, such as Web3 infrastructure provider Kaleido, ID verification solution Fractal and Web3 community management system Collab.Land. Combined, they have a usage base of more than 4 million, depending on the polygon.
Other web3 projects, such as the platform metaverse the sandbox and blockchain builder community guild.xyz, are also embedding polygone id.
Following the news, the price of Polygon’s native token, MATIC (MATIC), increased 2.5% from $1.22 to $1.25 in a matter of hours before falling back to $1.23.
Additional blockchain-based identification products in space today include Quadrata and IDNTTY.
