The XLS-40 modification on the XRP Ledger, which introduces a brand new normal for Decentralized Identifiers (DIDs), was activated on October 30. Accredited by 28 out of 35 validators (85.71%), the modification went reside yesterday.
Mayukha Vadari, a Senior Software program Engineer at RippleX, introduced the activation through X (previously Twitter), stating: “The XRPL DID modification goes reside as we speak! DIDs (Decentralized Identifiers) in web3 will be fairly complicated, when trying into how they work. Right here’s an explainer for XLS-40 and DID on the XRPL!”
XRP Ledger Will get Decentralized Identifiers
DIDs are distinctive, user-owned identifiers that aren’t managed by any central authority. Vadari defined, “A DID is roughly equal to a fingerprint in the actual world. All people has one, and although it doesn’t actually do something by itself, it’s helpful in different contexts. For instance, it may well hook up with Verifiable Credentials (VCs) or different information that show who you’re with out counting on a centralized authority.
These identifiers are designed to be “persistent, globally resolvable, cryptographically verifiable,” and appropriate with any distributed ledger or community, adhering to the World Broad Net Consortium (W3C) specs.
The XLS-40 DID specification was developed by Aanchal Malhotra and Vadari. She elaborated on the implementation: “A DID is represented on-chain through a sequence of two-way hyperlinks (bidirectional pointers). The consumer creates a DID doc and hyperlinks to it of their on-chain DID object on the XRPL. The DID doc additionally refers back to the on-chain DID object, so there’s no approach for another person to forge your id. In different phrases, the doc says your account is a part of its id, and the account says that the doc is its id.”
When customers sought clarification on the mechanics, one requested, “Creates when and the way?” Vadari responded, “There’s a brand new transaction known as DIDSet.” This new transaction kind allows customers to ascertain their DIDs on the XRP Ledger, facilitating the creation and affiliation of a DID with an XRPL account.
Addressing considerations about potential id forgery, a consumer inquired, “Okay, so what’s stopping me from copying another person’s doc and assigning that to my new DID id?” Vadari clarified, “Their doc gained’t level again to your id, so it gained’t be legitimate.” The bidirectional linking between the DID doc and the on-chain DID object ensures the authenticity and integrity of the id, stopping unauthorized duplication.
One other consumer, BitCrypto, posed a query about managing a number of identities: “What prevents an individual who has a number of accounts from making a DID for every of them, making that individual a distinct individual every time they use a kind of accounts?” Vadari acknowledged the chance: “If you wish to try this, that’s completely positive. Similar to the way you most likely have some social media accounts that aren’t linked to your real-world id.”
In response to data from xrpl.org, a Decentralized Identifier (DID) is a brand new kind of identifier outlined by the W3C that permits verifiable, digital identities. DIDs are absolutely underneath the management of the DID proprietor, unbiased from any centralized registry, id supplier, or certificates authority.
The important thing ideas of a DID embrace decentralization, verifiable credentials, and interoperability. Decentralization ensures that no central issuing company controls the DID, permitting the proprietor to replace, resolve, or deactivate it independently. This additionally enhances availability, as DIDs are normally saved on a blockchain and all the time obtainable for verification.
Verifiable Credentials (VCs) are essential as a result of, whereas anybody can create a DID and probably falsify data, the authenticity is established by means of a VC that’s cryptographically safe and tamper-evident. Within the DID ecosystem, there are three events concerned: the consumer (who controls the DID), the issuer (a trusted entity that verifies the data offline and offers the VC), and the verifier (who wants to verify the consumer’s id).
Interoperability implies that DIDs are open to any resolution that acknowledges the W3C DID normal, enabling them for use to authenticate and set up belief in numerous digital transactions and interactions.
On the XRP Ledger, the implementation of DIDs conforms to the necessities within the DID v1.0 specification. The method includes an XRPL account holder producing a DID that’s managed by their account. The DID is related to a DID doc as outlined by W3C specs. When a consumer offers their DID and VC to a verifier for a digital activity, the verifier resolves the DID to its doc and makes use of the VC to confirm its authenticity.
At press time, XRP traded at $0.5181.
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