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Verifiable Credentials Data Model v2.0

Verifiable credentials. W3C.

An issuer signs a set of claims about a subject. A holder later presents those claims, or a derivation, to a verifier. The verifier checks the issuer's signature, not a central account.

A reading of the public document. Not a copy of it, and not a claim about a later network that reused the name.

A credential pitch that stores the passport scan on a public chain has left this model.

The five-minute read

The defect

Showing a passport to prove you are over 18 shows the passport. The check needed one bit.

The rule

An issuer signs a set of claims about a subject. A holder later presents those claims, or a derivation, to a verifier. The verifier checks the issuer's signature, not a central account.

How it is put together

Issuer, holder and verifier are different roles. The claim is signed. Presentation can be a subset. The model allows selective disclosure. It does not force one cryptographic scheme.

Where the claim stops

The data model is not a blockchain.

One action, walked through

  1. An issuer signs a credential.
  2. The holder stores it.
  3. A verifier checks the signature, the issuer's key, and any revocation status the scheme defines.
  4. Who is the issuer, and where is their key?

The argument, unpacked

Why it is still on the desk

A credential pitch that stores the passport scan on a public chain has left this model.

After the text

Implementations differ on signatures and revocation. The roles are the standard.

What has to be true

  • The data model is not a blockchain.
  • It does not make the claim true. It makes the issuer's signature checkable.
  • Revocation is optional unless the profile requires it.

What happened after the paper

Implementations differ on signatures and revocation. The roles are the standard.

What to check before you use the idea

  • Who is the issuer, and where is their key?
  • What is presented, the whole credential or a derivation?
  • How does the verifier learn that the credential was revoked?

Terms

Issuer
The party who signs the claims.
Holder
The party who keeps the credential and presents it.

The problem the paper names

Showing a passport to prove you are over 18 shows the passport. The check needed one bit.

What the design proposes

  • Issuer, holder and verifier are different roles.
  • The claim is signed.
  • Presentation can be a subset. The model allows selective disclosure. It does not force one cryptographic scheme.

How the mechanism is specified

  • An issuer signs a credential.
  • The holder stores it.
  • A verifier checks the signature, the issuer's key, and any revocation status the scheme defines.

What this page does not treat as proven

  • The data model is not a blockchain.
  • It does not make the claim true. It makes the issuer's signature checkable.
  • Revocation is optional unless the profile requires it.

Why a venture studio still reads it

A credential pitch that stores the passport scan on a public chain has left this model.

This is Blockchain Lab's reading of a public design paper. It is not the paper, not a copy of it, and not an offer of tokens, equity, custody or a partnership. Later network behaviour can diverge from the text. Nothing here is investment, legal or technical advice.

Research status: Design paper. Last reviewed: 1 October 2026. This is a reading of a public paper, not investment, legal or security advice.