COVID-19: How Blockchain Technology and Self-Sovereign Identity Enables the New Normal of Remote Learning, Training and Working

Abstract

Even before the COVID-19 outbreak, digital

technology was already rapidly changing the way we

learn, develop skills and work. This is evidenced by

the growing adoption of online courses, virtual hiring,

collaboration tools and remote jobs. These trends will

undoubtedly accelerate and become the new normal

as “social distancing” becomes more commonplace in

a world where digital globalization continues

unabated.

As the global digital economy expands on top of a

vast internet universe, frictionless exchange between

individuals, organizations and devices will become

increasingly important, necessitating technologies

that improve trust and transparency. Self-sovereign

identity (SSI) is an identity model that recognizes

that an individual should own and control their

identity. In the near-term, it is likely to gain

increased adoption as a tool that makes distance

learning, hiring, and remote work more efficient and

allows seamless integration across platforms.

POINT OF VIEW

By Justin Kersey

Product Owner/Business Analyst, Blockchain

Self-sovereign identity (SSI), an identity model that recognizes that an individual should own and control their identity, is likely to gain increased adoption in the near-term as a tool that makes distance learning, hiring, and remote work more efficient. SSI improves security and allows seamless integration across platforms.

Identity Matters in an Online Economy

Identity is critical to an individual's ability to participate in the

digital economy, whether it be for authentication purposes,

authorization, data sharing, payments, or other online activities.

Although internet users can be highly certain of the authenticity

of the websites they visit, there is no way of reliably knowing the

identity of the people, organizations and other entities that

control those websites or with whom users communicate and

transact. Today, centralized and federated identity models are

deployed as trust brokers for internet-based transactions and

exchanges. Unfortunately, these identity models cause users'

identities to fragment across the internet and create inefficient

data silos and a disjointed user experience.

Defining Self-Sovereign Identity

Self-sovereign identity blends principles regarding identity data

ownership and management with technologies that implement

those principles. Technological advancements now include ways

to store, share, and authenticate identity data and third-party

credentials in a secure and privacy-preserving manner. SSI

entrusts an individual with ownership and control of their identity

without interventions by administrative authorities or centralized-

or federated-identity providers (IDPs). As shown in the following

illustration, this new ecosystem lets individuals interact directly

with entities without the need for intermediaries, using public-

key cryptography, decentralized identifiers, and blockchain

technology.

Today's centralized and federated identity models cause users' identities to fragment across the internet

SSI entrusts an individual with ownership and control of their identity without interventions by administrative authorities or centralized- or federated-identity providers.

POINT OF VIEW

In 2018, New America published an article, “The Nail Finds a

Hammer,” which described the potential for self-sovereign

identity to power a new wave of innovations in the field of digital

ecosystems. The authors explained, “We believe that the great

potential of SSI is that it can make identity in the digital world

function more like identity in the physical world, in which every

Centralized Identity Federated Identity Self-Sovereign Identity

You YouYou Peer

Org IDP Org

Distributed Ledger (Blockchain)Account Account

POINT OF VIEW

person has a unique and persistent identity which is represented

to others by means of both their physical attributes and a

collection of credentials attested by various external sources of

authority.”

Trust and Transparency, Lower Costs and

More Flexibility

Self-sovereign identity and verifiable credentials can inject trust

and transparency into the digital learning, skills development,

and work ecosystem. For example, if you complete a degree or

earn a certificate, a digital copy or verifiable credential can be

added to your SSI (stored in an identity wallet). This credential

can be shared with any other entity, such as an employer, that

participates in a compatible self-sovereign identity system. This

creates an ecosystem of verifiable credentials where you, the

individual, serve as the orchestrator and point of unification,

instead of the fragmented, siloed model of today, caused by

centralized- and federated-identity models.

The benefits of this approach include:

n Frictionless and low-cost background checks

n Reduction in credential fraud through cryptographic signatures

n A global ecosystem of standardized credentials that allows

organizations to accurately evaluate courses, exams and

qualifications from different regions around the world and

create equivalencies for them

Employment history and professional achievements can also be

captured in the form of verifiable credentials. This will become

increasingly important as the prevalence of remote workers and

contractors increases. Verifiable work experiences and

achievements will help these individuals prove their past

experiences and capabilities.

The Identity Owner as the Point of

Integration

Currently, there is no point of integration in the “ecosystem” of

digital course providers, certification boards, universities,

businesses and governments. These entities are largely walled-

off from one another. For example, if you take a course through

Udemy and earn a certificate, it is relevant to you and perhaps

your LinkedIn connections or employer. If you pass a certification

exam, you receive a piece of paper and possibly a link to a

digital credential on the certification body's website. You are

“…The great potential of SSI is that it can make identity in the digital world function more like identity in the physical world, in which every person has a unique and persistent identity…” – The Nail Finds a Hammer

The SSI model creates an ecosystem of verifiable credentials where you serve as the orchestrator and point of unification, instead of the fragmented, siloed centralized- and federated-identity models.

POINT OF VIEW

unable to aggregate and organize these achievements in a

meaningful way, unlike the verifiable learning path typically

offered by traditional educators. In other words, without SSI in

place, there is no integrated system to verify your

accomplishments and seamlessly communicate them to potential

employers or clients.

Self-sovereign identity shifts identity and credential management

from the client-server model of centralized and federated identity

systems, which creates silos, to a peer-to-peer model. This is

done through the use of public-key cryptography, decentralized

identifiers and blockchain. Certification from traditional education

providers is no longer necessary, enabling the individual to

become the point of connection or integration in the ecosystem.

(See the following illustration.) Verifiable credentials would be

issued by skills development, education providers, and

employers to identity owners. The identity owner can then

determine when, where, why and with whom to provide access

to these credentials.

With SSI the identity owner becomes the point of integration

in the education and jobs ecosystem.

Self-sovereign identity shifts identity and credential management from the client-server model to a peer-to-peer model.

POINT OF VIEW

Creating a Verifiable Learning Path from a

Variety of Sources

By replacing the client-server identity management paradigm

with peer-to-peer and adding verifiable credentials, it is possible

to construct learning and career paths with potential input from

the entire ecosystem of skills development and learning resource

providers, as well as employers. This model lets the identity

owner easily organize a unique, verifiable learning path from a

wide variety of resources to powerfully prepare for a particular

job. Similarly, employers can encourage job candidates to

complete recommended learning paths for certain roles, ensuring

that they enter the organization with the right skills and

verifiable competencies. Or, employers can upskill employees by

designing curriculums that draw upon a diverse variety of online

courses, university or community college programs, coding

academies or other competency evaluation frameworks. Any

course that is completed, certificate that is earned or work

experience that is gained will produce a verifiable credential that

can be shared with any other entity that uses a compatible self-

sovereign identity system.

The Future of Remote Learning, Training

and Working

In the near future, post-secondary education, skills development

and work will draw upon the entire universe of skills

development and learning resources. The path to acquiring

meaningful work will not be prescribed or overly influenced by

traditional educational institutions, but rather individually

constructed from a menu of online and offline courses, virtual

workshops, project portfolios (e.g. Github), online tutoring

sessions, competency exams, gig work, and other a la carte type

experiences. Similarly, on-the-job learning and career

advancement will be oriented to stackable-work and skills-

development experiences that build competencies and unique

portfolios valued by employers.

Ultimately, self-sovereign identity and verifiable credentials are

not only relevant in the near term but will also prove essential to

enabling longer-term paradigm shifts resulting from the recent

COVID-19 pandemic.

In the near future, SSI will support:Ÿ Distance learningŸ Non-linear

educationŸ Modular and

stackable credentials

Ÿ Remote workŸ Gig jobs /

contracting

POINT OF VIEW

Summary: What Will Disruption Look Like?

n Skills and competency evaluation achieve global

standardization, making it easier to recruit candidates for a

global workforce and remote economy.

n Employers increasingly value verifiable competencies and

measurable skills over degrees and other traditional proxy

evaluations of skills and employability.

n The private sector and entrepreneurs play a significant role in

developing the post-secondary education learning and skills

development ecosystem.

n Individuals with the top skills in their field will earn millions of

dollars teaching independent online classes. Credentials from

these top teachers will be highly sought after. (This is already

happening!)

n Technologies like cloud, mobile, and machine learning are

already transforming post-secondary education and

workplaces and will continue to do so with the help of

Blockchain, AR/VR and 5G.

Sources[1] Graglia, Mellon, Robustelli 2018, “The Nail Finds a Hammer,” New America, 18

October, accessed February 21, 2020

[2] Allen, C, 2016, “The Path to Self-Sovereign Identity,” Life With Alacrity, 25 April,

accessed Feb 21, 2020

[3] Sovrin 2018, “What is self-sovereign identity?”, Sovrin Foundation, accessed

Feb 21, 2020

[4] Dignan, L 2020, “Online learning gets its moment due to COVID-19 pandemic:

Here's how education will change,” ZDNet, 22 March, accessed April 3, 2020

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