The validator in the BCDiploma ecosystem
BCDiploma will enable all higher education schools to certify their diplomas and attestations on the Ethereum blockchain. Graduates will receive a simple URL link they can share on social networks, post on their CV or send to a recruiter. This is a lifelong valid link that also provides a one-click access to the diploma and to all the proofs of its authenticity.
But… how does it work? How can I be sure that the data consulted is authentic? How can I be sure that the address used to transmit the data is actually the school’s address? This is the question developed here.
Is a simple statement on social networks or on a website such as “The address 0x29b2bf551DCd0Dca6A67F79b414F40690bad552b is the address of the Ecole des hautes études en data sciences” sufficient for the construction of a large-scale “trust chain”?
- How can we be sure that the school does exist and is not a “degree mill” (a ghost institution that merely issues diplomas without any consistent educational background)?
- How can we be sure of the authenticity of the data without an “off-chain” verification of the link between the address and the school? What kind of guarantees does a mere statement on a website provides?
To answer this question, BCDiploma proposes to certify the school’s identity on Ethereum. In practical terms, this means that everyone must be able to verify that the Ethereum address from which the diplomas were issued is the school’s address… and that this school does exist! How? With a single click, and in an indisputable way, thanks to the information stored on the blockchain.
What is the role of the validator in the BCDiploma ecosystem?
The validator is an actor performing the necessary checks to ensure the reliability of his interlocutors and the real existence of the school: bank and physical identity, e-reputation, RCS number, DUNS number, intra-community VAT number, authorization to issue a diploma, verification of the billing address.
Once the verifications have been carried out, the validator stores the proof of identity and address of the school in the SmartValidator smart contract. The latter can then be queried at any time to verify that an address is “authentic”. And, obviously, only the “white listed” addresses will be able to proceed to the next step: issuing a public “certificate of identity” on Ethereum. We will elaborate on this step in the next article!
Proving the identity of legal persons on Ethereum is a subject that will probably see the emergence of reference actors, which already exist in the domain of natural persons (CIVIC or uPort for example). When BCDiploma is launched, it will be the first validator of the ecosystem. In order to build an open and trustful ecosystem, we expect other actors to play the role of validators in the future.
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