Digital Identity
| Digital Identity | |
|---|---|
| Digital representation used to distinguish entities |
Digital identity refers to a set of identifiers, attributes or credentials associated with an entity in a digital context. Different systems maintain different types of identity. A digital identity may describe a person, service, device or another entity, but assurance requirements vary by use case. [1]
Identity services
Identity-related systems may support enrollment, authentication, account management, authorization and credential recovery or revocation. NIST SP 800-63-4 provides detailed digital-identity guidance primarily for human users of networked government information systems; it is not a universal specification for machine identity.[2]
Credentials and assertions
Digital credentials can include secret keys, certificates, passkeys, or other proofs, depending on the context. W3C Verifiable Credentials provide a standard data model for portable claims, with issuers, holders and verifiers playing distinct roles.[3]
Physical AI applications
Connected robots may rely on both a machine identity and human operator identities. A secure design keeps authentication, authorization and safety checks distinct, even when they are coordinated.
Further reading
- Verifiable Credentials Data Model v2.0 — World Wide Web Consortium
See also
- Machine identity
- Identity Verification
- Robot Authentication
- Public Key Infrastructure
- Verifiable Credentials
- Digital Twins
References
- ↑ “Digital Identity Guidelines, SP 800-63-4”. NIST. Retrieved 2026-10-08.
- ↑ “Digital Identity Guidelines, SP 800-63-4”. NIST. Retrieved 2026-10-08.
- ↑ “Verifiable Credentials Data Model v2.0”. World Wide Web Consortium. Retrieved 2026-10-08.
| Physical AI and machine identity | |
|---|---|
| Core concepts | Physical AI · Embodied AI · Machine learning · Autonomous systems · Robotics |
| Hardware and systems | Robots · Computer vision · Sensors · Sensor fusion · Edge AI |
| Identity and trust | Machine identity · Device authentication · Robot cybersecurity · Digital identity · Public key infrastructure |
| Applications | Industrial automation · Humanoid robots · Autonomous vehicles · Smart manufacturing |