Linux Foundation said today it’s playing host to a key project aimed at facilitating the trustworthy exchange and verification of data between two parties over the internet.

The Trust over IP Foundation aims to provide a “robust, common standard” for data exchange and verification that will give businesses and individuals confidence that the information they receive comes from a “trusted source.” That should enable people to connect, interact and innovate at speeds currently not possible today, the foundation said.

The ToIP Foundation plans to advance “digital identity models” that leverage interoperable wallets and credentials, together with the new W3C Verifiable Credentials standard, to help protect digital assets and data. It notes that users are increasingly concerned about the integrity of data generated in “internet of things,” edge computing and artificial intelligence environments.

Those fears are “compounding the already low consumer confidence in the use of personal data and slowing innovation on opportunities like digital identity and the adoption of new services that can support humanity,” the foundation said.

One major benefit of being hosted by the Linux Foundation and its open governance model is that the project will be able to advance standards in a “neutral form” that supports pan-industry collaboration.

“The ToIP Foundation has the promise to provide the digital trust layer that was missing in the original design of the Internet and to trigger a new era of human possibility,” said Jim Zemlin, executive director at the Linux Foundation. “The combination of open standards and protocols, pan-industry collaboration and our neutral governance structure will support this new category of digital identity and verifiable data exchange.”

The ToIP Foundation will host four working groups to pursue its goals. They include the Technical Stack Working Group and the Governance Stack Working Group, which will be focused on developing the technology and governance protocols for the ToIP stack. The Utility Foundry Working Group and the Ecosystem Foundry Working Group will serve as communities for those working on the development of ToIP utility networks and digital trust ecosystems.

The ToIP Foundation has a host of industry backers, including Accenture Plc., IBM Security and Mastercard Inc.

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