What is a Digital Badge(SBT)?: Medium Article by Gem Zeitgeist

15.07.2024

On July 15, 2024, the Gem Zeitgeist Team published an article on their official Medium page with information about SBT.

You can read the content of this article on our website below:

https://medium.com/gem-zeitgeist/what-is-a-digital-badge-sbt-cf8b233311c9

INTRO

The token known as Soul Bound Token (SBT), also referred to as a digital badge, is a concept proposed by Vitalik Buterin for identity verification and is an NFT that cannot be transferred. This concept originates from the term ‘Soul Bound’ in the online game ‘World of Warcraft,’ which refers to items bound to a character. Vitalik Buterin has stated that in order to fully and securely realize a decentralized society using blockchain in the WEB 3.0 era, the concept of a digital badge (SBT) is necessary.

SBT offers the potential to securely represent personal identity and various assets due to its unique characteristics. This article will examine in detail what SBT is and how it can be utilized.

What is SBT ?

SBT is, in short, a non-transferable NFT. Only I can hold it, and it is not possible to trade it. As a result, unique records that can prove my identity, such as social security number, driver’s license number, and account number, will be recorded on the digital badge (SBT), allowing convenient proofs even in a decentralized society. The digital badge (SBT) is issued as a wallet, which is called “Soul.” Once issued, it becomes non-transferable, so it is used as “SOUL.”

Features of SBT

WEB 3.0 is decentralized through blockchain, so all data is distributed and stored among participating users. Previously, all data was stored on servers, but as security became less secure, security technology was developed to prevent the risk of hacking. In this way, the information managed by companies is returned to individuals, and the need for digital badges (SBT) has emerged so that individuals can manage and store it more safely.

  1. Non-transferable: Digital badges (SBT) are bound to the wallet in which they were issued and cannot be transferred or traded to other wallets.
  2. Identity Proof: Contains information that can prove the user’s identity.
  3. Trustworthiness: Digital badges (SBTs) ensure trustworthiness through non-transferability.
  4. Recoverability: If your wallet is lost, recovery is possible according to certain rules.

Difference between SBT and NFT

Difference Between NFT and SBT

Digital Badge (SBT) is an applied version of NFT (Non-Fungible Token). While existing NFTs are unique but tradable, SBTs are unique but non-tradable. Therefore, only I can have it, and it can be used as a means of proving someone’s identity.

Digital Badge (SBT) Use Cases

  1. History and Credit:
  • Resume management: You can create a trustworthy digital resume by issuing a digital badge (SBT) containing an individual’s educational background and work experience.
  • Credit loans: Unlike traditional mortgage-based loans, digital badges (SBTs) enable unsecured credit loans. If you do not repay your loan, your credit score will drop and it will become difficult to get a loan in the future.
  • Health Records: Soulbound tokens that hold personal medical records can be presented to a doctor or health care provider. A digital badge (SBT) can replace processes such as filling out documents, verifying medical history, and answering phone questions.

2. Governance and DAOs:

  • Governance Tokens: Digital Badges (SBT) are non-transferable, preventing centralization of power and preventing inappropriate individuals from purchasing governance tokens.
  • DAO Operations: Digital Badges (SBTs) help prevent fake accounts, distribute voting rights fairly, and streamline the identity verification process.

3. User Segmentation:

  • Soul-based airdrop: A digital badge (SBT) allows you to run airdrops for specific users.
  • Target Marketing: More sophisticated marketing is possible based on the experience and history included in the digital badge (SBT).

4. Various uses:

  • Copyright Protection: Creators can authenticate their authorship by issuing NFTs from their Soul.
  • Decentralization Measurement: By measuring the similarity between users, you can take into account group bias and decentralization.

In addition, the Korean government is promoting various public and private projects using digital badges (SBT) as shown below.

(1) Public digital boucher:

  • CBDC-based digital voucher: The Bank of Korea is building a digital voucher management platform that allows mobile use of vouchers in the fields of education, culture, and welfare. This increases the convenience of using vouchers and prevents fraudulent supply.

(2) History & Career management:

  • Digital Badge (SBT): The Korea Education and Research Information Service (KERIS) is developing a platform that manages adult learners’ learning history as a digital badge. Through this, you can save your learning history in your electronic wallet and use it as a digital resume when necessary.

(3) Certificate of Qualification:

  • Electronic certification: Human Resources Development Service of Korea has started a service that issues national technical certification in the form of a digital badge (SBT). This is expected to save about 50 billion won in administrative costs in the process of issuing 2.5 million certificates annually.

These efforts aim to implement a digital platform for government, and aim to increase the efficiency of public services and improve public convenience through blockchain technology. Digital Badges (SBT) and government projects are complementary to each other and are expected to bring about innovative changes in various public and private sectors. In the future, it remains to be seen whether digital badges (SBT) will become the next keyword for DeFi, NFT, and DAO and bring a new revolution to the crypto ecosystem.

Future Prospects

SBT will likely become an important tool for decentralized identity authentication and proof of various rights. This will allow users to more effectively prove their achievements and qualifications, expand the scope of use of digital badges (SBT) in DeFi, DAO, and various WEB3.0 applications, and promote technological progress. Digital badges (SBT) are expected to play an important role in various fields such as credit loan, fair governance, user segmentation, and target marketing.

Conclusion

In order for digital badges (SBT) to be introduced in earnest in the WEB3.0 era, mutually trustworthy data processing must be carried out and a way to prove oneself is needed. Previously, we designated a trustworthy organization to store our authentication information and authenticated it whenever necessary. However, since there will be no third party to guarantee identity, a unique and tamper-proof means is needed while storing my identity information on the blockchain, and digital badges (SBT) are attracting attention due to this need. In order for these digital badges (SBT) to be applied in real life, more diverse attempts and advancements are needed. It still seems distant from our daily lives, but considering the current pace of development, we believe that one day everyone will suddenly be using it.