On trust, risk and credibility

Think about these situations -

• You use one of the many app based services to search an technician to address some faulty switches and electric points at your residence. What do you do to select one from among the many listings? More often than not you look at ratings, feedback and availability before you set up the appointment. But - are you able to determine if this professional (or expert) has the necessary training and skills to handle the request?
• You want to consult with a healthcare professional (HCP) for a procedure which is complex and requires specialised knowledge of some technology. How do you figure out which HCP to consult? More often than not you consult friends and family, figure out if they provide consultations at a center near you and if appointments are available for the particular day/time you want. But - are you able to gather the information around whether they completed the necessary training to be able to offer and complete the procedure?
• You want to offer scholarship and stipend help to students for carrying on advanced studies. To evaluate deserving candidates you seek from them transcripts and certificates to ensure they meet the eligibility criteria. But - are you able to verify whether the learner records you have at hand are genuine?

All these scenarios have one important element - asymmetry of information. And now that you see the pattern you will see more in everyday engagements. The asymmetry leads to harms in reputation and often risks to business and brand - as this recent incident of transcript forgery will show.

In some cases, the candidates are even logging into the official website, editing the rank list and saving it in the cache of their personal computers to be presented as proof to unsuspecting family members and friends.

This deficit of trust is a risk. And using an informal method (looking at feedback and ratings) or a community/social method (depending on friends and family to suggest the right choice) is not the only way to reduce the risk. Open standards based approaches exist which create trusted ecosystems between the three main actors in any transaction - the issuer of a certificate (or, record); the holder of the certificate (or, record) and the verifier (of the claim made by the holder).

Often described as the "Trust Triangle", digitally verifiable credentials like the ones which can be created on #MARKStudio by Dhiway allow issuing organizations to create cryptographically secure, digitally verifiable, portable and tamper-resistant records which are durable. These credentials enable the verifier to seek answers to the 4 important aspects

• Who issued it?
• To whom was it issued?
• What is the current status of this record?
• Was the integrity of the record maintained?

An important context associated with any record is current status - is the certificate current, has the license expired or has the transcript been revoked - these are bits which are incredibly difficult to deduce from the traditional printed record model which does not contain any cryptographic method to enable a verification path.

These 4 aspects also enable creating the audit-ready digital trail of additional aspects associated with any record

• Is the organization authorised to issue this record?
• Does the record use the correct format?

Organizations have to switch over to digitally verifiable records as a way to mitigate risks from forgery and tampering. The issuers of high value certificates of learning, skills and experience will see immediate business benefits such as

• saving on the time needed to verify records
• cutting costs involved in complex verification systems
• enhancing the reputation of the brand by leading the creation of a digital trust ecosystem
• contributing to a network effect by exchanging data which comes with provenance and lineage built in

Insecure paper based approaches are not capable of addressing the challenges presented by digital techniques of alteration and modification. Cryptography based digitally verifiable credentials are the way forward for creating a secure web of trust.

Read more on this topic:

1. https://www.livemint.com/opinion/columns/technology-to-help-eliminate-fake-certificates-11658171592363.html
2. https://www.dhirubhai.net/pulse/building-consumer-trust-open-e-commerce-dhiway/