Decentralized Identifier (DID)
A globally unique identifier that a person or entity creates and controls directly, without depending on any centralized registry or authority to issue or validate it.
A Decentralized Identifier, or DID, is a globally unique identifier that an individual, organization, or device creates and controls directly — typically anchored to a blockchain or other decentralized system — without depending on any centralized registry, government body, or company to issue, host, or validate it. A DID is commonly associated with cryptographic keys the controller holds, letting them prove ownership of the identifier and sign statements associated with it.
DIDs are commonly used alongside verifiable credentials (see Kaavon's "Verifiable Credential" glossary definition), with a DID serving as the stable, self-controlled identifier that specific credentials get issued to and associated with. The core value proposition is reducing dependency on centralized identity providers, whose services a user could otherwise lose access to if that provider shut down, revoked access, or changed its policies, since a DID's controller retains direct, cryptographic control over the identifier regardless of what any single service provider does.
Examples
- A user controlling a DID through their own cryptographic keys retains that identifier regardless of whether any specific company or service provider they've interacted with shuts down or revokes their access.
- A DID commonly serves as the stable identifier that verifiable credentials get issued to, letting a holder present proof of specific credentials without relying on a centralized identity provider.