The Decentralized Identity Foundation is at the forefront of innovating standards and technologies for decentralized digital identity. Today, we're excited to announce the launch of two new work items within our Identifiers & Discovery Working Group, aimed at improving the functionality and security of Decentralized Identifiers (DIDs).
Markus Sabadello, Founder & CEO of DanubeTech, DIF Steering Committee member, and Co-Chair of the ID & Discovery WG, emphasizes the importance of these new initiatives:
"The I&D WG recognizes that identifiers will always be the foundation of any digital identity system. For this reason, I am excited about the two latest work items in our working group - DID Traits and Trust DID Web. Both will be extraordinarily useful in our continued quest to build strong and useful identifier systems that other technologies and protocols can rely on."
DID Traits
JC Ebersbach, CEO of identinet GmbH and newly-added Co-Chair of the ID & Discovery WG, initiated the DID Traits work item. DID Traits focuses on helping implementers choose the most appropriate DID method for their specific use cases.
Key aspects of the DID Traits work item include:
- Identifying and defining key traits of identifiers that have proven significant
- Providing a JSON schema for DID method authors to present their method's characteristics in a structured, machine-readable format
- Enabling third-party systems, such as DID resolvers, to utilize this structured information effectively
The DID Traits work builds upon existing literature and specifications in the field, aiming to streamline the process of DID method selection and implementation.
JC shares his motivation behind the DID Traits initiative:
"The introduction of Trust DID Web (did:tdw) at IIW 39 inspired me to initiate the DID Traits work item. I’m thrilled that both initiatives have been adopted by the ID & Discovery working group. My aim is to provide implementers with simple, practical tools that will lead to more widespread integration of Self-Sovereign Identity technologies. With DID Traits, we aim to simplify the process of selecting the most appropriate DID method for specific use cases, making adoption easier and more effective."
Trust DID Web
Stephen Curran, Founder of Cloud Compass Computing and Chair of the Sovrin Foundation Board of Trustees, leads the Trust DID Web work item. This initiative introduces the did:tdw method specification as an enhancement to the existing did:web method.
Key features of Trust DID Web DIDs include:
- Ongoing publication of all DID Document versions
- A verifiable chain of updates from genesis to deactivation
- Self-certifying identifiers for DIDs, enabling portability
- Signed proofs for DID Document updates
- Optional mechanisms for pre-rotation keys and collaborating witnesses
- Standardized DID URL path handling
- A "/whois" path for returning a verifiable presentation about the DID
Trust DID Web aims to provide greater trust and security while maintaining the simplicity of did:web, fostering a more trusted and secure web environment for decentralized digital identities.
Stephen Curran explains the goals of the Trust DID Web initiative:
"I’m happy to lead the new Trust DID Web (did:tdw) initiative at DIF. Our goal is to enhance did:web with important security and verifiability features from the world of ledger-based DIDs, while keeping the simplicity that makes web-based DIDs so accessible. These improvements are designed to boost trust and security without adding complexity. We think that did:tdw provides a solid foundation for decentralized digital identities that are secure and easy to deploy for a variety of applications."
Join Us
We invite everyone to join us in these exciting new initiatives. As Markus Sabadello notes, "We welcome anyone to our working group who would like to contribute to these new work items, or propose any other identifier-related topic."
Both meetings are bi-weekly:
- DID Traits on Tuesdays at 8:00 Pacific / 17:00 Central Europe
- Trust DID Web on Thursdays at 9:00 Pacific / 18:00 Central Europe
To participate in these and other DIF work items:
👉 Join DIF
📆 Subscribe to the DIF Calendar
📧 Contact membership@identity.foundation with questions
Stay tuned for updates as we progress with these important work items that will shape the future of decentralized identity.
