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Issue a VC

This guide provides a step-by-step process for issuing a verifiable credential (VC), covering everything from installing the SDK to signing the credential.

Prerequisites

Install Packages

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Swift

npm install @web5/credentials@1.0.0

Install Classes

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Swift

import { VerifiableCredential } from "@web5/credentials";

Obtain DIDs

VCs are issued to and from subjects of Decentralized Identifiers (DID).

• If you don't already have one, you can create a DID.
• Also, you'll need the DID of the entity you'll like to issue the VC to.

VC Properties

Credentials are created in JSON format and contain the following properties:

• type: Type of the credential (e.g. EmploymentCredential, EducationCredential)
• issuer: DID of the entity who is issuing the credential
• subject: DID of the entity that the credential is being issued to
• expirationDate: (optional) The date when the credential expires (in ISO 8601 standard format)
• data: JSON containing claims that are being asserted

Create VC

To create the VC, utilize the VerifiableCredential.create() method. Pass a JSON object containing the properties as shown below:

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Swift

This results in:

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Swift

{
  "vcDataModel": {
    "@context": [
      "https://www.w3.org/2018/credentials/v1"
    ],
    "type": [
      "VerifiableCredential",
      "EmploymentCredential"
    ],
    "id": "urn:uuid:84953246-a77f-4c5a-a336-69a55bd92989",
    "issuer": "did:dht:fhzeks5bkferfztk6m63xjkg7a4hbf7snk444g8f1h1xapt391ty",
    "issuanceDate": "2023-03-31T06:08:49Z",
    "credentialSubject": {
      "id": "did:dht:usnoybts46xnei6brftkixe5qsbypxcye4th397bs4tyouqouyho",
      "position": "Software Developer",
      "startDate": "2023-04-01T12:34:56Z",
      "employmentStatus": "Contractor"
    },
    "expirationDate": "2023-09-30T12:34:56Z"
  }
}
      

Sign VC

The next step is signing the VC. This cryptographic process, performed by the issuer, ensures the integrity and authenticity of the VC:

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Swift

Signing the credential returns a VC JWT:

eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJFZERTQSIsI...

Giving this VC JWT to the holder completes the issuance of the credential.

VC JWTs can be converted back to a JSON object by applications that need to engage with the contents of the credential.