Some blockchain applications are solutions looking for problems, but there are other issues that are just begging for help from decentralized technology. Managing and authenticating identity is one of the latter.
Traditional authentication processes in many industries use easily guessable identity questions, forgeable documents and unwieldy manual checks. As such, they are ripe for disruption. Armin Ebrahimi, CEO and founder of the blockchain-based ID management company ShoCard[1], said that the real challenge is focusing the lens.
“There are so many areas where solutions can apply; one of the challenges has been focusing on fewer verticals so that we can do a better job and not spread ourselves too thin,” he said.
ShoCard uses a mobile app to scan user credentials, storing a cryptographic digest of them on a blockchain. Users can then choose which credentials they share with others who see only the hash, rather than the sensitive information itself. This enables organizations to authenticate people quickly without endangering their data, Ebrahimi explained.
Easier Air Travel
ShoCard focuses on use cases that reduce friction in heavily regulated industries. One example is in air travel. ShoCard partnered with travel technology provider SITA to provide a travel authorization solution based on a blockchain.
In the ShoCard/SITA system, travelers scan their passports into a mobile app and take selfies, using a private key to hash this verification data on the blockchain. They begin their journey by presenting a data-linked QR code to an agent or a kiosk. The travel system verifies the travelers’ identities against the blockchain data and then issues a single travel token that they can use to pass through checkpoints such as passenger lounges and check-in desks.
At each new checkpoint, the travelers use the app to display a new QR code representing their token, which an
