New Decentralized Product Which Uses ZK Proofs Gets Launched By Polygon

Polygon, an Ethereum Layer-2 scaling protocol, has finally released a Zero Knowledge (ZK) decentralized identity solution to the public almost a year after first announcing its development. Put simply, the Polygon ID service employs ZK proofs, which utilize cryptographic techniques to enable users to verify their identity online without their sensitive information being passed on to or potentially stored with any third party.

Polygon ID is also being integrated into various other Web3 projects, including popular metaverse platform The Sandbox and blockchain builder community Guild.xyz, just to name a few.

Important details

Polygon ID was made public by Polygon Labs on March 1st, nearly a year after it was first announced via a closed-source environment. According to the Polygon team, Polygon ID was created to resolve the issue of digital trust. What distinguishes Polygon ID when compared to most other decentralized ID frameworks, as the team believes, is its use of ZK technology, which allows users to verify their identities or other credentials without revealing sensitive information.

The public release therefore adds four new tools to the Polygon ID toolkit, namely Verifier SDK, Issuer Node, Wallet SDK, and Wallet App, allowing Polygon developers to successfully integrate decentralized identities into their applications. Users will be able to interact with smart contracts and validate information on-chain by producing ZK proofs using off-chain credentials like a passport, national ID, or even education credentials like a diploma or degree.

A new age of digital identity?

It is no secret that the world is becoming increasingly digitized, so it would make all the sense in the world for Polygon to introduce this new initiative. Polygon claims it is also the first ZK-based digital ID tool that makes it possible to store credentials locally on handheld devices like smartphones, eliminating the need for passwords.

In a recent tweet, Polygon ID co-founder David Schwartz stated that the product was constructed using the latest decentralized identity standards, which will have a significant effect in terms of helping safeguard developers and users as their information will never be shared with any third party or intermediary.

The pinnacle of digital ID adoption is providing a means of identifying oneself that the average consumer could regularly use, David explained. Several projects, including Web3 infrastructure provider Kaleido, ID verification solution Fractal, and Web3 community management system Collab.Land, have already committed to integrating Polygon ID upon launch.

According to Polygon, they have a combined user base of over 4 million, a number that is expected to grow drastically over time.