Page 77 - ITU-T Focus Group Digital Financial Services – Technology, innovation and competition

ITU-T Focus Group Digital Financial Services
Technology, Innovation and Competition

attribute data is shared with the blockchain. Although models such as this enable a high level of privacy,
concerns with the underlying technology and access requirements create barriers to adoption and are
particularly unsuitable for targeting unbanked demographics.
The requirement for Internet-enabled smartphones or computers in order to access the service presents
a limitation for use in countries such as Benin where internet penetration is low as 9.3 per cent (2014) .
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Furthermore, in the absence of central governance, upgrades in security or architecture will be difficult to
co-ordinate and execute.

A.6.2 No IDP model summary
No IDP

Description Intermediary IDPs are replaced by technologies that facilitate decentralised management e.g.:
Blockchain / shared distribution ledgers.

Strengths • Potentially privacy enhancing;
• Difficult to fraud due to requirement for consensus across network for ledger
updates.
Weaknesses • No clear model for identity has been established to date;

• No clear governance on the upgrade of public blockchains;
• Places potentially unrealistic expectation on consumer to manage their own
identity.
Examples Bitcoin

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