A model in which people, organisations and devices hold their own identifiers and credentials, and present them without asking the issuer each time.
In self-sovereign identity the holder keeps credentials in a wallet. An issuer signs them. A verifier checks the signature and decides. The building blocks are decentralised identifiers and verifiable credentials.
The model moves trust to the edge. A credential is only as good as the wallet that holds its key. If the key can be copied, so can the identity. That is why the EU wallet adds wallet and key attestation: the issuer checks the wallet before it issues.
Devices can be holders too. A sensor or a robot with its own identifier and credentials needs a key that cannot leave it, and a way to show its state. Without hardware behind it, a self-sovereign device identity is a file that can be moved to another device.
Attested wallets and digital identityAttested devices
Working on re-attestation for your product? A first call takes 30 minutes and commits you to nothing. Bring your product and the one question that worries you.
Next fixed date: EU Digital Identity Wallets are due in every member state on 24 December 2026, 42 days from now.