Mastercard and Microsoft Join Forces to Advance Digital Identity Innovations

Mastercard and Microsoft announced a strategic collaboration to improve how people manage and use their digital identity.

Currently, verifying your identity online is still dependent on physical or digital proof managed by a central party, whether it’s your passport number, your proof of address, driver’s license, user credentials or other means. This dependence places a huge burden on individuals, who have to successfully remember hundreds of passwords for various identities and are increasingly being subjected to more complexity in proving their identity and managing their data.

Working together, Mastercard and Microsoft aim to give people a secure, instant way to verify their digital identity with whomever they want, whenever they want. The answer to these challenges is a service that would allow individuals to enter, control and share their identity data their way on the devices they use every day. That’s Mastercard’s intention, working closely with players like Microsoft.

“Today’s digital identity landscape is patchy, inconsistent and what works in one country often won’t work in another. We have an opportunity to establish a system that puts people first, giving them control of their identity data and where it is used,“ says Ajay Bhalla, president, cyber and intelligence solutions, Mastercard. “Working with Microsoft brings us one step closer to making a globally interoperable digital identity service a reality, and we look forward to sharing more very soon.“

Access to a universally-recognized digital identity could unlock new and enhanced experiences for people as they interact with businesses, service providers and their community online, including financial services, commerce, government services and digital services. “Digital identity is a cornerstone of how people live, work and play every day,“ said Joy Chik, corporate vice president, Identity, Microsoft. “We believe people should be in control of their digital identity and data, and we’re thrilled to first work with Mastercard to bring new decentralized identity innovations to life.“

This digital identity initiative could also help solve for common challenges such as identity inclusion, identity verification and fraud prevention. This initiative will serve as the foundation for new Mastercard services powered by Microsoft Azure and built-in collaboration with leaders in the banking, mobile network operator and government communities. Additional details on these efforts will be shared in the coming months.