What are future alternatives to using phone numbers for identity?

[suhashini25]

Phone numbers have become a ubiquitous identifier for digital identity, largely due to their widespread adoption and the convenience of SMS-based one-time passcodes (OTPs) for two-factor authentication (2FA). However, as highlighted by issues like SIM swap fraud and privacy concerns, their limitations are becoming increasingly apparent. The future of digital identity is moving towards more robust, secure, and user-centric alternatives.

Here are some key alternatives emerging or gaining traction:

1. Biometric Authentication:
Moving beyond simple fingerprint or facial recognition on a single device, future biometrics will involve:

Multi-Modal Biometrics: Combining several biometric modalities (e.g., face + voice + fingerprint) for stronger authentication, making it much harder to spoof.
Behavioral Biometrics: Analyzing unique patterns in how a user interacts with a device – keystroke dynamics, mouse movements, gait, swipe gestures, and even how they hold their phone. AI and machine learning continuously learn these subtle behaviors to verify identity in the background, providing continuous authentication beyond a single login event. This is non-intrusive and highly resistant to static spoofing attempts.


Liveness Detection: Advanced AI-driven techniques to switzerland phone number list ensure that the biometric being presented is from a live person and not a deepfake, photo, or mask. This is crucial for facial and voice biometrics.
Edge Computing for Biometrics: Processing biometric data directly on the device (at the "edge") rather than sending it to central servers. This significantly enhances privacy as sensitive biometric templates never leave the user's control.

2. Decentralized Identity (Self-Sovereign Identity - SSI):
This paradigm shifts control of identity back to the individual.

Decentralized Identifiers (DIDs): Unique, cryptographically verifiable identifiers that users own and control, independent of any central authority (like a government or company). DIDs are often rooted in blockchain or distributed ledger technology.

Verifiable Credentials (VCs): Digital equivalents of physical documents (e.g., driver's licenses, university degrees, professional certifications) that are cryptographically signed by an issuer and stored securely in a user's digital wallet. The user can then selectively present specific attributes from these VCs to verifiers without revealing all their personal data.

Privacy-Preserving: DIDs and VCs allow for "zero-knowledge proofs," meaning a user can prove they meet a certain requirement (e.g., "I am over 18") without revealing their exact birthdate. This dramatically enhances privacy compared to sharing a phone number that links to a wealth of personal data.
3. FIDO (Fast IDentity Online) Standards and Passkeys:
The FIDO Alliance, with support from major tech companies like Apple, Google, and Microsoft, is driving the adoption of passwordless authentication.

Public Key Cryptography: FIDO standards leverage public-key cryptography to replace passwords. When a user registers, a unique cryptographic key pair (private key on device, public key with service) is created. Authentication occurs by proving possession of the private key, making it highly resistant to phishing and server-side data breaches.
Passkeys: An evolution of FIDO, passkeys are cryptographic credentials stored securely on user devices (e.g., smartphone, laptop) and synchronized across devices via cloud services (e.g., iCloud Keychain, Google Password Manager). They offer a seamless, secure, and phishing-resistant login experience across websites and apps, eliminating the need for passwords or SMS OTPs.
4. Hardware Security and Secure Enclaves:
Trusted Platform Modules (TPMs) / Secure Enclaves: Dedicated, tamper-resistant hardware components embedded in devices (smartphones, PCs) that securely store cryptographic keys and perform authentication operations in an isolated environment. This makes it extremely difficult for malware or attackers to steal identity credentials.
Physical Security Keys: USB, NFC, or Bluetooth keys (like YubiKeys) that require physical presence for authentication, providing a robust second factor that is phishing-resistant.
5. AI-Powered Risk-Based Authentication:
Beyond a single authentication event, AI monitors continuous behavioral and contextual signals to assess risk in real-time.

Contextual Clues: Analyzing location, device, network, time of day, and past behavior. If an unusual pattern is detected (e.g., login from a new country, different typing rhythm), additional verification steps are triggered.
Anomaly Detection: AI learns normal user patterns and flags deviations that might indicate fraud or account compromise, reducing reliance on static identifiers.
Relevance to Bangladesh:
Bangladesh has made significant strides in digital identity with its Smart National ID (NID) system and biometric SIM registration. However, these are largely centralized and phone number-dependent. Future alternatives could:

Enhance NID System: Integrate biometrics (beyond fingerprints) and secure hardware elements directly into the Smart NID system or its digital equivalents.
Drive Financial Inclusion: Decentralized identity and behavioral biometrics could provide more secure and accessible identity verification for digital financial services (MFS, digital banking), especially for populations that face challenges with traditional forms of identity.
Improve Cybersecurity: Moving away from SMS OTPs would significantly bolster defenses against SIM swap fraud, a prevalent issue in the region.
Policy and Infrastructure: Implementing these alternatives would require robust policy frameworks (like the upcoming PDPA), digital literacy campaigns, and significant investment in secure infrastructure and interoperability standards.
In conclusion, the future of identity lies in moving away from easily compromised phone numbers and towards multi-layered, user-centric, and cryptographically secure solutions that leverage advanced biometrics, decentralized paradigms, and hardware-backed security, enhancing both privacy and security.