A Self-Sovereign Identity Based on Zero-Knowledge Proof and Blockchain

Abstract

Systems for generating and managing digital identities are in the process of being transformed to improve data sharing security and increase decentralization. Addressing both issues, a theoretical solution to create and manage Self-Sovereign Identities (SSI) is proposed using two Zero-Knowledge Proof (ZKP) protocols based on the discrete logarithm difficulty. Automorphism group properties are introduced to link several identities, their identifiers and attributes to produce a proof. The proposed SSI protocol does not encounter the problem of reusing the same secret key as in the case of the initial ZKP Schnorr protocol. The designed protocol ensures minimal disclosure of information to a single trusted third party. In addition, it allows zero disclosure of information to service providers requiring proof of authentication or identification. Such a SSI protocol is compliant with Electronic IDentification And Trust Services (eIDAS) as well as General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) regulations.

Keywords

• Decentralized identity (DID)
• self-sovereign identity (SSI)
• zero-knowledge proof (ZKP)
• higher education