In September 2026, journalists reported what may be one of the largest breaches of government-issued identity documents in history. Cybercrime enables document fraud at an unprecedented scale, and cryptographic security on physical documents in the form of digital signatures is not enough. Real-time revocation is needed to protect individuals against identity theft. W3C Verifiable Credential Barcodes could be one solution - and the technology is open and free for all to use.
W3C opened a Representative Office in China following approval by the W3C Board of Directors, to fulfill a primary role in legal compliance and to expand the reach of W3C’s existing Partner Beihang University.
