Digital identity toolkit
Our no-nonsense guide to help demystify the world of digital identity.
Demistifying digital identity
There are already plenty of digital identity resources out there, so why another? Well, most are rather lengthy technical reports which are hard for developers, non-profits, journalists or members of civil society to unpick. There’s a lot of confusion about what digital identities are (and are not), and we believe that if the technology is to be genuinely useful then it’s important that people understand them first.
This easy-to-use toolkit aims to provide you everything you need to know about digital identity. To make it as accessible as possible we’ve broken it down into eight separate sections so you can dive straight into any area that interests you the most. Each section will be launched individually, so keep an eye out as we continue to launch new sections.
The toolkit
1. Toolkit introduction
This provides a summary of the toolkit’s content, and details of the intended audience and learning objectives.
2. Identity basics
This sections unpacks what identity is, what it is used for, the different types of traditional (non-digital) identification, why it matters and some of the consequences of living without identification. It also provides a brief history of identification and explores the shift from paper-based to online / digital identities.
3. Digital identity explained
We dive into how to create a digital identity and what it can be used for. We explore digital trends and developments, provide advice on how you can establish and manage your digital identity, and look at the different types of digital providers.
4. Case studies
How governments, NGOs and the private sector around the world use digital identities. This is categorised by sector to give you a sense of the vastly different uses of digital identity, from supporting refugees’ access to critical services and making it easier to collaborate across borders, through to enabling access to a wide range of government and financial services.
5. Digital identity providers
Looks at the different types of verified digital identity providers, describes their solutions and how they’re used, who they target, their unique selling points, main uses and what they’re best used for.
6. Implementation
Find information on how to integrate the solutions outlined in the previous section into your own products or services.
7. Data privacy and security
Looking at the key privacy and security points that you need to factor in as you plan, develop and build a digital identity system. It has a detailed checklist of questions to help you protect your users’ privacy and security at every stage.
8. Reports and further reading
A directory of reports on digital identity for those who wish to delve further into this exciting area of work.