The issuance of digital identities will be facilitated by the implementation of blockchain technology and zero-knowledge cryptography in Buenos Aires.
Residents of the Argentine capital now have access to decentralized digital IDs on their mobile devices, which are enabled by the scaling protocol ZKsync Era.
Buenos Aires Integrates Decentralized Identity
On October 21, the government disclosed that it has integrated the decentralized identity solution QuarkID into its miBA digital platform, which serves as the city’s platform for accessing government services and documents, according to local media reports.
QuarkID, a digital identity protocol developed by Extrimian, a Web3 firm, has been utilized to secure decentralized digital identities (DIDs) for over 3.6 million active users of miBA since October 1. The QuarkID wallet is enabled by ZKsync Era, an Ethereum scaling protocol that employs zero-knowledge rollups.
“The city is establishing a new standard in privacy and security for digital identity management by providing 3.6 million residents with greater control over their personal data,” according to a translated statement from the Buenos Aires government.
Over the past few years, Buenos Aires has implemented blockchain-based initiatives. In September 2023, the city declared that birth and marriage certificates would be the initial documents available on the blockchain, followed by proof of income and academic records.
Diego Fernández, the secretary of innovation and digital transformation of Buenos Aires, stated, “We have observed a significant amount of blockchain-based innovation in financial services. However, this initiative demonstrates the potential of blockchain to revolutionize other use cases, such as government services, by enabling citizens to securely own their data.”
The QuarkID wallets contain self-sovereign data, which allows citizens to manage credentials when engaging with the government, businesses, and other individuals.
Fernández continued, “By granting residents control over their identities, we are not only enhancing privacy and security but also establishing the groundwork for a future in which personal data ownership is a fundamental right, safeguarded by sophisticated cryptographic zero-knowledge proofs.”
The city’s education system was the focus of another recent noteworthy initiative. In August, the city of Buenos Aires incorporated Ethereum training into its high school curriculum, providing some students with the opportunity to take courses in Solidity, a programming language that is used to develop decentralized applications based on Ethereum.
