Certiva: Decentralized Academic Credential Verification 🎓🔗

Certiva is a decentralized, blockchain-based platform built on Starknet that revolutionizes the way academic credentials are issued, stored, and verified. By leveraging Zero-Knowledge Proofs (ZKPs) and tamper-proof blockchain technology, Certiva eliminates academic fraud, ensures privacy, and provides instant verification for employers and institutions.

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🌟 Why Certiva?

Academic credential fraud is a growing problem, and traditional verification methods are slow, costly, and prone to errors. Certiva solves this by:

• Eliminating fraud with blockchain-backed, tamper-proof degrees.
• Protecting privacy using hashed identifiers and ZKPs.
• Enabling instant verification for employers and institutions.
• Seamlessly integrating with HR platforms, job portals, and university systems via APIs.

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🛠️ How It Works

1. Degree Issuance by Universities

• Universities issue degrees through Certiva’s platform.
• Each degree is digitally signed and stored on the blockchain.
• Universities prove domain ownership using DNS verification to ensure authenticity.

2. Secure Storage

• Degree metadata is stored on Starknet for immutability.

3. Privacy-Preserving Verification

• Employers and institutions can verify degrees in real-time without accessing sensitive student data.
• Zero-Knowledge Proofs (ZKPs) ensure privacy by allowing verification without exposing personal information.

4. Student Consent for Verification

• Before certificates are published on-chain, the student must provide their public wallet address.
• When an employer initiates verification, the student must sign a message off-chain to approve the verification request.
• This ensures that even if someone has access to the student’s ID, they cannot verify the certificate without the student’s explicit permission.

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Key Points

1. Public Wallet Address:

   • The student provides their public wallet address during certificate issuance.
   • This address is used to verify the student’s identity during the verification process.

2. Off-Chain Signing:

   • The student signs a structured message (e.g., containing the certificate hash and employer’s address) using their wallet.
   • This signature proves that the student has authorized the verification request.

3. On-Chain Verification:

   • The employer submits the signed message to the blockchain.
   • A smart contract verifies the student’s signature and the certificate’s validity.

4. Explicit Permission:

   • Without the student’s signature, the verification request cannot proceed.
   • This prevents unauthorized parties from verifying the certificate, even if they have access to the student’s ID.

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5. Seamless Integration

• Certiva provides APIs for easy integration with HR platforms, job portals, and university systems.

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🚀 Key Features

• Decentralized Verification: Built on StarkNet for secure, scalable, and low-cost transactions.
• Tamper-Proof Degrees: Blockchain-backed credentials that cannot be forged.
• Instant Verification: Real-time credential checks for employers and institutions.
• Privacy Protection: Hashed identifiers and ZKPs ensure student data remains private.
• Student Consent: Verification requires the student’s explicit approval via wallet signature.
• API Integration: Easy integration with existing systems for universities and employers.

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🧩 Tech Stack

• Blockchain Layer: StarkNet (Cairo for smart contracts).
• Storage: IPFS/Arweave for off-chain data.
• Privacy: Zero-Knowledge Proofs (ZKPs).
• Frontend: React.js for user-friendly interfaces.