This initiative is a part of the effort to make Credo (formerly Aries Framework JavaScript) a global framework by making it compliant with the standards defined in the European Digital Identity Architecture and Reference Framework (ARF).

Recently, the EU has been taking big steps toward the regulation and governance of digital identity solutions. This has been causing big waves globally in terms of what standards are gaining recognition. The Architecture Reference Framework (ARF) describes the current understanding of how Digital Identity will function in Europe. It describes the standards, architecture, and flows that the EU digital identity ecosystem needs to support. To build identity solutions that are interoperable and compliant with this ecosystem, new libraries and tools will have to be developed and existing ones adjusted.

This initiative involved the Animo team adding Hardware Security Module Support for Aries Askar.

A Hardware Security Module (HSM) is a dedicated physical computing device that safeguards and manages digital keys and aids in the protection of cryptographic keys. It is engineered to be tamper-resistant to both physical and digital attacks. HSMs are used in scenarios where it's necessary to provide a high level of security and avoid any potential for loss, theft, or compromise of sensitive cryptographic information. To comply with ARF requirements, configuration type 1 credentials must be backed by an HSM. AFJ can utilize HSMs by adding it to Aries Askar.

🚧 This proposal has been fully funded and is currently being implemented. The results can be found in the different repositories surrounding Credo.