FB pixel

Digital wallet updates from diverse providers highlight decentralized storage trend

Digital wallet updates from diverse providers highlight decentralized storage trend
 

As digital identities based on different models become gradually more widespread around the world, companies and governments alike are working towards the development of digital wallets aimed at facilitating this shift. Following this trend, digital ID technology provider Northern Block has received a conformance certification from the Digital Identity Laboratory of Canada (IDLab) for its digital wallet, Australian NSW Digital Minister Victor Dominello announced an update of the country’s Beyond Digital strategy, and Apple teased the (delayed) upcoming release of a new wallet feature adding digital IDs to devices in a future iOS 15 and watchOS 8 update.

IDLab confirms Northern Block’s digital ID conformity standards

A digital wallet from Northern Block intended to support self-sovereign identity has been confirmed compliant with the Aries Interop Profile (AIP) 1.0.

Northern Block first released its suite of SSI products, dubbed NB Orbit, last February.

Alongside the development of NB Orbit, Northern Block also continued its open source-based work at the Trust over IP Foundation, the DIACC, and Hyperledger Aries.

The latter, in particular, is an interoperable tool kit designed to enable companies and individuals to develop tools for the creation, transmission, and storage of verifiable digital credentials.

“We are part of a vibrant digital identity ecosystem that knows that digital sovereignty can only be achieved through open sourced auditable systems,” says Northern Block CEO Mathieu Glaude. “We’re proud to support and contribute to it,”

In fact, the Canadian government, as well as some European ones, have already selected Hyperledger Aries to develop their digital ID solutions.

The technology was also recently evaluated by IDLab, which tested the NB Orbit mobile wallet on both iOS and Android devices. IDLab received funding from the Canadian government earlier this year to conduct testing of digital ID technologies.

“Acting as a neutral and trusted third party, the IDLab confirms conformity to technology and standards,” explains IDLab General Manager Pierre Roberge.

“Northern Block, an early user of the IDLab has successfully demonstrated the conformance of the NB Orbit mobile wallet with AiP v1, which many governments are asking for as a starting point.”

Australia updates Beyond Digital strategy

The announcement was made by New South Wales (NSW) Digital Minister Victor Dominello during an interview with iTnews at 2021 digital.nsw showcase event.

On the occasion, Dominello said decentralized credentials that give citizens control of their digital identity will play an increasingly important role in the future.

The development of digital ID in NSW received a boost when the state first launched its digital driver’s licenses program in late-2019. Adoption of the new digital ID was considerable, and by May 2021, more than three million drivers had registered for the scheme.

Now, Dominello told iTnews the state is officially updating its Beyond Digital strategy with an update of its digital driver license scheme, as well as the launch of a personalized “credential vault,” or digital wallet, capable of storing both government and private sector credentials. The wallet will store digital ID credentials as part of a shift towards decentralized storage and control by individuals, according to Dominello.

The NSW Digital Minister also added that the new plan will be implemented alongside the IDSupport program, designed to aid citizens whose identity credentials have been stolen.

Apple’s digital driver license features to be delayed to 2022

The Cupertino-based company has delayed the release of their new Wallet feature, which will enable users to add a digital copy of driver’s licenses and state IDs to iPhones and Apple Watches.

Originally scheduled for release by the end of the year for use in Arizona and Georgia, the upcoming iOS 15 and watchOS 8 feature was now delayed to early 2022, according to MacRumors.

In terms of industry deployment, Apple said in September the new feature will be initially released in selected TSA security checkpoints in U.S. airports.

Users choosing to take advantage of it will be able to authorize the sharing of the specific information requested by the TSA using the biometrics authentication methods Face ID and Touch ID.

Related Posts

Article Topics

 |   |   |   |   |   |   |   |   |   |   |   |   |   | 

Latest Biometrics News

 

Cyber Threat Observatory workshop advises on protections for national digital ID systems

The Alan Turing Institute launched the Cyber Threat Observatory last year to monitor cyber threats to digital ID systems. The…

 

Kyrgyzstan state printer wades into biometric passport market with Namibia deal

A shipment of 130,000 biometric passports has been sent from Kyrgyzstan to Namibia, after a contract was signed between the…

 

Spanish law among most comprehensive for age checks, kids’ online safety

Among EU nations pursuing child online safety legislation and age verification tools, Spain has been at the forefront. It has…

 

UN cautions govts to safeguard human rights in AI procurement

AI is a major trend of this decade with advancements in the technology having an effect across society, for both…

 

Optimistic plan would pair universal legal identity with basic income program

A new paper calls the lack of legal identity for millions of people around the world one of the “most…

 

Facia declares breakthrough deepfake detection scores

Facia has reached the point where it is scoring perfect accuracy for deepfake detection on third-party datasets, including Meta’s. The…

Comments

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Biometric Market Analysis

Most Viewed This Week

Featured Company

Biometrics Insight, Opinion

Digital ID In-Depth

Biometrics White Papers

Biometrics Events