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Opening up 'Zero-Knowledge Proof' technology to promote privacy in age assurance
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- DeepHorus
A major step forward for digital privacy was announced today as a leading technology company open sourced its Zero-Knowledge Proof (ZKP) libraries, fulfilling a prior commitment and building on a partnership with Sparkasse to support age assurance in the European Union. The move aims to make powerful cryptographic tools widely available, enabling private and public sector developers to build privacy-enhancing applications and digital identity solutions. This addresses an urgent need for secure and private verification methods in an increasingly digital world.
Zero-Knowledge Proof technology allows individuals to prove certain attributes about themselves without revealing any additional information. For example, a person visiting a website can verifiably demonstrate they are over 18 without sharing their birth date, name, or any other personal data. This cryptographic technique ensures that only the necessary fact is confirmed, drastically reducing the risk of data breaches and identity theft.
The open-sourced libraries are now available on GitHub under the repository google/longfellow-zk, providing a robust and efficient implementation of ZKP. The company’s goal is to encourage widespread adoption across the ecosystem: web and app users gain a more private digital environment; businesses of all sizes can easily integrate privacy protections; developers can freely use the codebase to create focused applications; and researchers can explore new applications for the technology.
The implications are significant, particularly in light of the European Union’s eIDAS Regulation, set to take effect in 2026. This regulation encourages Member States to incorporate privacy-enhancing technologies like ZKP into the European Digital Identity Wallet (EUDI Wallet). By making these tools openly available, the company accelerates the development of EUDI Wallets, ensuring that citizens can prove their age or other credentials without compromising their privacy.
The company expressed excitement about this new chapter for Zero-Knowledge Proofs, inviting developers, researchers, and organizations to explore the codebase and contribute to its evolution. As digital identity systems become more critical, this open-source approach could set a standard for privacy-first verification across industries.
Looking ahead, the widespread adoption of ZKP could transform how age assurance and identity verification are handled online, moving away from centralized data collection toward decentralized, user-controlled systems. With the backing of open-source communities and regulatory frameworks like eIDAS, this technology may soon become a cornerstone of digital privacy worldwide.
