SITA has signed a co-innovation agreement with open-source verifiable data technology company Indicio to accelerate the development and deployment of digital identities for travel.
SITA and Indicio plan to drive innovation in open-source, decentralized identity technologies that enable seamless, secure and privacy-preserving processes in the airport and throughout the entire journey. The development of digital identities, or Digital Travel Credentials (DTC), enables passengers to securely create a digital version of their physical passport in line with the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) standards.
The DTC is stored as a verifiable credential in the passenger’s mobile wallet – this means travelers keep control of their personal data and consent to share it as needed with different entities as they travel. Only required passenger data is shared before travel, so passengers arrive at the airport ready to fly with all document checks already completed. The technology has been built to ensure authenticity and integrity, and ownership can be automatically and repeatedly verified, thereby mitigating the risk of fraud.
The agreement follows a successful trial of the technology in collaboration with the Government of Aruba. Passengers arriving at Queen Beatrix International Airport applied for their travel authorization using a simplified process that eliminated the need to manually enter information from paper travel documents. Using a DTC, passengers could then consent to share any of their relevant data directly from their digital wallet on their mobile device to multiple entities, from the government at the port of entry to other touchpoints such as hotels or car rental companies.
Jeremy Springall, senior vice president of SITA at Borders, said, “The adoption of digital identities will be the biggest technology breakthrough in the travel industry in decades. It will simplify the identification process at every step of the journey and open up opportunities for the air transport industry to fully embrace the benefits of seamless travel and the digital economy. SITA, together with Indicio, are proud to be leading the charge.”
Heather Dahl, CEO of Indicio, said, “It is difficult to understate just how significant SITA’s leadership has been in the field of open-source verifiable credential technology and decentralized identity; over the past three years, we’ve collaborated to push this technology forward with a shared vision for what it can do. And we delivered. The horizon has now expanded, filled with a myriad of applications. With SITA’s DTC using Indicio Proven technology, we will make all these applications a reality for passengers, aircrew, airports, borders, hotels and governments. We are excited about what this partnership can build and deliver.”
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