> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.soverage.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Introduction

> Soverage Gateway: decentralized proof of personhood

Soverage Gateway is a privacy-first decentralized identity system that provides **proof of unique human identity** without storing personal data.

Soverage is a personal project exploring decentralized proof of personhood. It is non-commercial, built on open standards, and currently running on testnet.

Users verify their identity through the [Soverage Gateway](https://gateway.soverage.com), complete multiple attestations, and receive portable credentials. No personal information is retained at any point.

## Get started

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="How it works" icon="diagram-project" href="/how-it-works">
    Understand the verification flow, from identity check to credential issuance
  </Card>

  <Card title="Key concepts" icon="book" href="/key-concepts">
    DIDs, Verifiable Credentials, attestations, and personhood scores
  </Card>

  <Card title="Testnet guide" icon="flask" href="/testnet-guide">
    Try the full verification flow on Hedera Testnet
  </Card>

  <Card title="Architecture" icon="sitemap" href="/technology">
    Technical architecture, DLT layer, and open standards
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## What it does

When a user verifies through Soverage, three credentials are issued:

* **Decentralized Identifier (DID)**: a [W3C DID](https://www.w3.org/TR/did-core/) anchored on-chain that serves as the foundation for the user's identity
* **Verifiable Credential (VC)**: a [W3C Verifiable Credential](https://www.w3.org/TR/vc-data-model/) cryptographically signed and linked to the user's DID
* **Personhood Token**: a non-transferable token proving the user is human

Each credential includes a **personhood score** (0-100) reflecting the strength of the user's identity proof, based on the number and type of attestations completed.

## Standards

Soverage is built on open standards:

| Standard                                            | Reference                                                                                                                             |
| --------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| W3C Verifiable Credentials                          | [w3.org/TR/vc-data-model](https://www.w3.org/TR/vc-data-model/)                                                                       |
| W3C Decentralized Identifiers                       | [w3.org/TR/did-core](https://www.w3.org/TR/did-core/)                                                                                 |
| OpenID for Verifiable Credential Issuance (OID4VCI) | [openid.net/specs/openid-4-verifiable-credential-issuance](https://openid.net/specs/openid-4-verifiable-credential-issuance-1_0.html) |
| OpenID for Verifiable Presentations (OID4VP)        | [openid.net/specs/openid-4-verifiable-presentations](https://openid.net/specs/openid-4-verifiable-presentations-1_0.html)             |
| Ed25519 signatures                                  | [RFC 8032](https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/html/rfc8032)                                                                             |
| WebAuthn (device attestation)                       | [w3.org/TR/webauthn](https://www.w3.org/TR/webauthn-2/)                                                                               |
| Hedera Consensus Service (HCS)                      | [docs.hedera.com/hedera/sdks-and-apis/sdks/consensus-service](https://docs.hedera.com/hedera/sdks-and-apis/sdks/consensus-service)    |
| Hedera Token Service (HTS)                          | [docs.hedera.com/hedera/sdks-and-apis/sdks/token-service](https://docs.hedera.com/hedera/sdks-and-apis/sdks/token-service)            |