The Bermuda Stack
Origins
In the fall of 2017, the Shyft Network founders came together and documented their vision to build a security-optimized POW public blockchain designed to bridge centralized and decentralized ecosystems, bonding Web2 to Web3. The team realized early on that in order for the cryptocurrency space to self-regulate, industry representatives had to deeply understand the concerns, needs, and opportunities recognized by global governments and intergovernmental bodies.
“For many years, jurisdictions have been searching for a secure and efficient protocol to best manage and share citizen data within a privacy-oriented, auditable, and user-consent-based framework.”
In January 2018, Shyft’s co-founder, Joseph Weinberg was introduced by a team from the OECD to the Honourable Premier David Burt of Bermuda while attending the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. The Premier has a background in technology, and was already deep down the blockchain rabbit-hole. The two leaders hit it off immediately due to a shared belief in the potential of decentralized networks to meaningfully improve the lives of people all over the world. Joseph and the Premier also had a grand vision in common: they both wanted to create a decentralized identity framework that would result in expanded individual sovereignty, improved data security, and new business opportunities.
For many years, jurisdictions have been searching for a secure and efficient protocol to best manage and share citizen data within a privacy-oriented, auditable, and user-consent-based framework. Reviewing the work done in Estonia and India revealed that the world is still looking for a leader to step forward with a working, transnational solution. In May of 2018, Premier Burt and Joseph Weinberg signed an MOU to officially join forces to address the challenge at hand and make their vision a reality in Bermuda.
What followed was an intensive four months of collaborative planning to transform Bermuda into a global leader in digital identity and secure data sharing. Joseph and a team of experts from Shyft Network began collaborating with Bermudian government officials and business leaders to design a world-class digital asset framework within a supportive regulatory and legislative environment, with the ultimate goal of charting a technology-forward future for Bermuda, and a model for the societies of tomorrow to follow.
PerseID
Soon thereafter, PerseID was formed as the Bermuda-based joint-venture mandated to execute the duo’s vision, starting with launching a pilot of the ‘Bermuda Stack’ built on top of Shyft Network in partnership with Trunomi and BurstIQ.
The three-phased project roadmap will enable Bermudian citizens, government entities, and private enterprises to collaborate and interoperably exchange permissioned data in a much more secure and efficient manner versus inherently flawed traditional methods and flows. Specifically, the ‘Bermuda Stack’ will facilitate the digitization of government issued identification documents, utilizing and enhancing the utility of existing government records, services and processes. By developing publicly shared frameworks around identity and data protection and establishing corresponding legislation for data privacy, there is a great opportunity to be both compatible with the recent technology standards surrounding these components of personal digital identity, as well as utilizing the adaptivity inherent in the ‘Bermuda Stack’ to apply the most cutting edge technology to enhance privacy over the next 3–5 years.
“PerseID’s ultimate goal is to provide national citizens with world-class functionality and user experience, while setting the bar for global standards around data privacy and security.”
The envisioned ‘Bermuda Stack’ partner ecosystem will consist of government departments, regulators, banks, financial service companies, utilities, law firms, real estate companies, corporate service providers, and professionals. We’re working with many of these partners today to ensure even the initial phases of PerseID are useful for Bermudian citizens.
While Bermuda is looking to be the first viable live permissioned network-based national identity systems in the world, PerseID is also currently in partnership talks, under contract, and in planning phases with several other governments looking to replicate the pilot in Bermuda. All participating parties are really excited to share more information regarding these initiatives in 2020.
PerseID’s ultimate goal is to provide national citizens with world-class functionality and user experience, while setting the bar for global standards around data privacy and security. We’re working hard to launch the global-standard framework of DID technology and legislation in 2020 that can act as a benchmark model for future societies.
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This piece was written by the Shyft Network team.
Shyft Network aggregates trust and contextualizes data to build an authentic reputation, identity, and creditability framework for individuals and enterprises.
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