As a revolutionary technology, blockchain has gained widespread application in recent years. Its potential has been fully demonstrated, particularly in fields such as finance, supply chain, and digital identity verification. In these applications, permission management and identity verification are crucial components for ensuring system security and reliability. This article will explore permission management and identity verification mechanisms in blockchain development, including their principles, methods, and application scenarios.

1. Overview of Permission Management in Blockchain

A core feature of blockchain technology is decentralization. In traditional centralized systems, permission management is typically controlled by a centralized entity (such as a company or service provider), where all user and service access permissions are defined and managed by that entity. However, in decentralized blockchain systems, the absence of a central control point makes permission management and control more complex. This necessitates technical means to ensure that all parties in the blockchain network can correctly execute corresponding operations while maintaining security and privacy.

1.1 Basic Principles of Permission Management

In blockchain systems, permission management primarily involves the following aspects:

• Access Control: Determines which users or nodes can access data on the blockchain, execute contracts, and perform other operations.

• Role Management: Assigns different permissions based on the roles of users or nodes. For example, roles such as administrators, users, and nodes often have varying permissions.

• Smart Contracts: Implements fine-grained permission control through smart contracts. Smart contracts are programs deployed on the blockchain that can define specific access rules and permission requirements.

1.2 Common Permission Management Methods

In blockchain, permission management methods come in various forms, with the most common including:

• Identity-Based Access Control (IBAC): Each user or node obtains permissions through their identity, and the system determines the operations they can perform based on their identity information. This method is commonly used in scenarios requiring explicit identity verification, such as digital currency transfers.

• Role-Based Access Control (RBAC): Permissions are divided based on the roles of users or nodes, and a user's permissions are determined by the role they play. For example, in enterprise applications, different roles (such as regular users and administrators) may have different permissions.

• Attribute-Based Access Control (ABAC): In addition to identity information and roles, ABAC manages permissions based on additional attributes such as time and geographic location. This method is suitable for systems requiring more granular permission control.

• Multi-Signature and Threshold Signatures: Multi-signature mechanisms require multiple key holders to sign an operation to ensure it can only be executed with the consent of the majority. Threshold signature mechanisms require a specified minimum number of signers to approve an operation, commonly used in multi-party collaborative blockchain systems.

1.3 Challenges in Permission Management

Although blockchain technology provides a decentralized approach to permission management, it still faces some challenges in practical applications:

• Balancing Flexibility and Security: Balancing system security with user permission flexibility and convenience is a challenge. For example, overly strict permission restrictions may degrade user experience, while overly lenient permission management may introduce security risks.

• Decentralized Identity Verification: Blockchain systems inherently lack a unified identity verification mechanism. Ensuring the trustworthiness of each node or user's identity and effectively preventing identity forgery is a critical issue.

• Scalability of Permission Management: As blockchain networks expand, ensuring that the permission management system can effectively scale to support more users and nodes is a technical challenge.

2. Identity Verification in Blockchain

Identity verification is a critical step in ensuring the authenticity and trustworthiness of each participant in a blockchain system. Due to the decentralized nature of blockchain, traditional identity verification methods (such as usernames and passwords) are no longer applicable, necessitating reliance on more secure and reliable identity verification mechanisms.

2.1 Public and Private Key Mechanisms

Identity verification in blockchain systems is typically based on Public Key Infrastructure (PKI), where users generate public and private keys to identify themselves. Public and private keys have a one-to-one correspondence; the public key can be disclosed, while the private key must be kept strictly confidential.

• Public Key: Each blockchain address has a unique public key, which other users can use to identify the user's identity.

• Private Key: Users use their private key to sign transactions or operations, proving their authorization for a particular action. The confidentiality of the private key is crucial; if the private key is leaked, attackers can forge the user's identity and perform malicious operations.

2.2 Decentralized Identity Verification

Decentralized Identity Verification (DID) refers to the management and verification of identity information using decentralized technologies like blockchain, without relying on a central authority. DID allows users to control their own identity information and store it on the blockchain.

The advantage of decentralized identity verification lies in its ability to provide higher privacy protection and security while reducing the risk of identity information leakage. Users can choose when, where, and to whom to disclose their identity information, thereby avoiding unnecessary exposure.

2.3 Zero-Knowledge Proofs

Zero-Knowledge Proofs (ZKP) are cryptographic techniques that allow one party to prove they know certain information without revealing any additional details. In blockchain, zero-knowledge proofs are widely used for identity verification and privacy protection.

For example, users can use zero-knowledge proofs to demonstrate they possess certain qualifications (such as age or educational background) without revealing specific details or documentation. This ensures the reliability of identity verification while protecting user privacy.

2.4 Multi-Factor Authentication

In blockchain systems, adopting Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) can enhance the security of identity verification. Common multi-factor authentication methods include:

• Password and Verification Code: Users enter a password and receive a verification code via SMS or email for identity verification.

• Biometric Technology: Identity verification through biometric features such as fingerprints or facial recognition.

• Hardware Wallets: Use hardware devices (such as cold wallets or USB hardware keys) to store private keys, ensuring the security of identity verification.

By combining multiple identity verification factors, blockchain systems can effectively prevent identity forgery and attacks, thereby enhancing security.

3. Application Scenarios of Permission Management and Identity Verification in Blockchain

3.1 Digital Currency

In digital currency systems (such as Bitcoin and Ethereum), identity verification and permission management are crucial. Users sign transactions with their private keys to prove their control over the digital currency. Meanwhile, the blockchain network ensures the legitimacy of each transaction through consensus mechanisms, preventing double-spending or fraudulent transactions.

3.2 Supply Chain Management

In supply chain management, blockchain technology enables information sharing and transparency among all parties. Through permission management and identity verification, it ensures that each participant (such as suppliers, logistics companies, and consumers) can only access information they are authorized to view, protecting sensitive corporate data. Additionally, using decentralized identity verification, each link in the supply chain can verify the identity of its participants, ensuring the authenticity and reliability of information.

3.3 Digital Identity and Electronic Voting

Digital identity verification and electronic voting systems are important applications of blockchain technology. Through decentralized identity verification, users can ensure the uniqueness and security of their identity in electronic voting, preventing identity forgery and vote tampering. Permission management ensures the fairness and transparency of the voting process, with all operations being traceable and verifiable.

4. Summary

Blockchain technology provides new solutions for permission management and identity verification, particularly in decentralized environments, effectively enhancing system security and reliability. However, as blockchain applications continue to expand, achieving more flexible and scalable permission management and identity verification while safeguarding user privacy and data security remains an ongoing challenge. In the future, with further technological advancements, blockchain will play an even more significant role in permission management and identity verification.