Digital identity has a home in West Virginia

West Virginia is aiming to cement its position as a central node in the digital identity ecosystem of the U.S., with ongoing efforts by the West Virginia Digital Identity Tech Hub (WVDITH) to put the spotlight on next-generation digital ID technology it believes is critical to U.S. economic growth and security.

The hub, a project of the West Virginia Department of Economic Development, collaborates with industry leaders, academic institutions, government agencies and community organizations to develop trustworthy digital identity tools. Per its website, the hub pursues tech that will “protect privacy, ensure accessibility, and enhance interconnectivity, positioning the United States as a global leader in principled digital identity.”

The hub is funded through the Regional Technology and Innovation Hub grant program authorized under the CHIPS and Science Act. The grant program seeks to strengthen regional economies and create jobs while improving national security, by investing $500 million in 20 qualifying regions.

West Virginia is an easy pick for such an initiative. It is home to the FBI and Marshall University’s Cyber Security Center, and next door to major government biometrics and digital ID vendors Leidos and Idemia NA – the latter of which is supplying its mobile driver’s license (mDL), making it the fifteenth state to implement the digital credential.

That said, poorer areas of the state remain underserviced with internet connectivity – an area in which the Hub hopes to support, in collaboration with community partners, as part of its commitment to equity.

Understanding digital ID, authentication

In an interview with WV News, WVDITH Program Manager Ariana Shives says the Hub’s work reflects the realities of a totally digitized society, in which innovative tech is frequently exploited as a tool for cybercrime.

In order to live safely in that world, Shives says, “and make sure our kids and aging parents can, too, we really need to understand and embrace digital identity, cybersecurity, authentication and everything that goes with it in order to protect ourselves and what we have.”

Shives says that, whether it’s working with community groups and other public partners, private firms, or academia, the big question fueling the hub’s work is sustainability. “How can we use digital identity with these partners to build out solutions that are impactful in the short term and prove that we can do this in the long term?”

At present, WVDITH’s 18-month strategy grant is set to end in spring 2025. But the goal is to attain official designation as a technology hub.

Work at West Virginia University

Work on biometrics and facial recognition systems that can power digital identity is also happening at West Virginia University, which recently received in-kind software support from U.S.-made biometrics and computer vision firm ROC, to catalyze biometric systems engineering exploration.

WVU Today reports on the research of Nima Karimian, assistant professor in the Lane Department of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering at the WVU Benjamin M. Statler College of Engineering and Mineral Resources.

Karimian has received $632,000 in National Science Foundation CAREER Award funding to  investigate increasingly common hardware-based attacks on biometric systems. He aims to develop “the first hardware-based biometric template protection system that not only will deal with known forms of attack but unfamiliar new threats, too.”

Article Topics

biometrics  |  biometrics research  |  digital ID  |  digital identity  |  facial recognition  |  West Virginia  |  WVU