ICONLOOP Designated an Innovative Financial Service for Its Blockchain-Based Digital Identity Verification Service
MyID, the service designated as an Innovative Financial Service, is a blockchain-based digital identity verification service. It stores the identity verification information generated during the non-face-to-face account opening process currently used across the financial industry — ID documents, account transfers, mobile phone identity checks and the like — on the user's own device, so that the stored information can be submitted again the next time an account is opened remotely. Once MyID launches, steps such as photographing an ID document, which are a source of friction in non-face-to-face account opening today, will be simplified, making it easier and more convenient for financial consumers to sign up for financial products.
In the existing non-face-to-face account opening process, submitting a stored image of an ID document is not permitted; identity can only be verified by capturing the document in real time. With MyID, the user's identity is confirmed once at a financial institution, after which the verification information is stored and then validated through the blockchain to prove it has not been tampered with. When the verification information is reused, biometric authentication is applied, addressing as far as possible the security concerns that might otherwise arise.
MyID's designation as an Innovative Financial Service appears to reflect not only the added convenience it brings to non-face-to-face account opening but also its broader range of potential uses. Because an ID document verified by a financial institution is a means of authentication reliable enough for actual financial transactions, MyID is expected to find application across the digital ecosystem as a whole. For instance, a car-sharing service could accept only a driver's license verified through MyID, or a shopping mall could allow login through a MyID connection without a separate sign-up process — resolving problems that have arisen from the absence of a unified ID that everyone trusts.
In line with global trends, MyID will also be implemented as a self-sovereign identity verification service free from the risk of personal data leaks. Self-sovereign means that, rather than entrusting an individual's information to a particular institution for verification, the individual keeps that information and submits it directly when it is needed. Adopting a self-sovereign approach removes the risk of the breaches that can occur when a single institution holds large volumes of personal data, and it makes it impossible for anyone to surveil personal information or extract compensation for providing and using it — with the effect that ownership of personal data is transferred fully to the individual.
ICONLOOP previously took part as the technology partner of the financial investment industry's blockchain consortium, developing CHAIN ID, the world's first blockchain-based shared authentication system, and has accumulated wide-ranging experience in blockchain solutions, infrastructure, and blockchain-based authentication services.
"MyID's designation as an Innovative Financial Service will be a major turning point for the growth of Korea's blockchain industry," said ICONLOOP CEO JH Kim. "Meaningful real-world use cases have been hard to find until now, so we see this as a valuable opportunity to demonstrate the usefulness of blockchain broadly, and we hope it becomes the catalyst for building a digital ID ecosystem based on blockchain technology."
A total of 18 companies, including ICONLOOP, are reported to be taking part in the MyID project. With companies from a range of sectors — manufacturers, commercial banks, securities firms, insurers, and e-commerce companies — having expressed their intention to participate, this regulatory sandbox designation is expected to enable rapid adoption of the service.
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