🔗 The Trust Triangle

🔗 The Trust Triangle: Issuer, Holder, Verifier

The Trust Triangle is the foundation of Verifiable Credentials and Decentralized Identity. It ensures that identity verification is decentralized, secure, and user-controlled.

1️⃣ Issuer

A trusted authority (government, university, employer, financial institution) creates and digitally signs Verifiable Credentials (VCs). These credentials confirm facts such as educational qualifications, work experience, or identity documents.

2️⃣ Holder

The individual or organization that receives, stores, and manages credentials in their digital identity wallet. Holders can selectively disclose parts of their credentials when needed.

3️⃣ Verifier

An entity (business, government agency, online service) that requests and verifies specific identity attributes from a user’s credentials without accessing excessive personal data.

How the Trust Triangle Works

1. Issuer (e.g., a university) signs and issues a diploma as a Verifiable Credential (VC).

2. Holder (graduate) stores the diploma in their self-sovereign identity wallet.

3. Verifier (potential employer) requests proof of degree completion. The graduate shares the credential via cryptographic proof without revealing unnecessary personal details.

🔗 Sources:

• W3C Verifiable Credentials Trust Model: https://www.w3.org/TR/vc-data-model/
• European Digital Identity Framework (EUDI): https://ec.europa.eu/digital-building-blocks/wikis/display/EUDI