PHACKS in Ireland

Pioneering Innovation in Privacy and Identity Verification through Collaboration

Sedicii, a leader in privacy enhancing technologies (PETs), is transforming how organisations address identity verification, data security and collaboration in the digital age. Leveraging advanced cryptographic protocols like Zero Knowledge Proofs (ZKP) and Secure Multi-Party Computation (MPC), Sedicii empowers businesses to collaborate securely without exposing sensitive information.

Founded in Waterford, Ireland, Sedicii has built its reputation on tackling compliance, fraud prevention and privacy challenges, earning recognition for its innovative technologies and impactful collaborations. Through initiatives like the EU-funded PHACKS project, Sedicii exemplifies its commitment to pioneering secure, privacy-preserving solutions that redefine trust in digital transactions. 

The PHACKS Project: Shaping the Future of Identity Verification 

Sedicii is spearheading this EU-funded PHACKS (Platform for High Assurance Collaborative Knowledge Sharing) initiative designed to commercialise advanced privacy enhancing technologies, with a focus on fostering data-driven collaboration among participants. 

The project is centred on developing solutions that facilitate secure, privacy-preserving access to digital services and resources. These solutions enable participants to collaborate using their data assets without revealing those assets to one another, including access to authoritative data sources that are generally not open for public consumption. 

PHACKS promotes the utilisation of state-of-the-art cryptographic methods, such as ZKP, to ensure sensitive data remains fully protected throughout the entire data processing process. 

PHACKS in Ireland 

Some of the largest tech companies in the world are based in Ireland.  Through projects like PHACKS and its collaborations with leading financial institutions, Sedicii reinforces Ireland’s position as a hub for digital innovation.  

By aligning with EU initiatives and regulations, Sedicii is helping Irish organisations navigate complex compliance landscapes while improving customer experiences. This collaborative approach strengthens trust among businesses and helps companies meet customer needs for security and privacy, fostering a more secure and efficient digital environment. 

One of these initiatives is Sedicii’s address verification solution using ZKP to validate name and address without sharing any customer data. It is the first of its kind to leverage authoritative data, in a fully privacy-preserved manner, in this case with Ireland’s national electricity board ESB. The solution is in use by clients in Ireland to verify addresses in Ireland and Northern Ireland thereby reducing fraud and overhead. The solution is secure and GDPR compliant. This collaboration with ESB was seven years in the making and highlights Sedicii’s committment to innovation and collaboration. 

Sedicii went on to form a collaboration with on of Ireland’s pillar banks, PTSB, focused around streamlining the customer on-boarding process for Know-Your-Customer (KYC) checks. The goal is to increase the first-time onboarding success rate while reducing friction for the customer in the ID verification process. By providing a fully digital channel for the customer to provide details about themselves that can be verified directly with an authority, costs are reduced, time to on-board is reduced and customer satisfaction rates are increased. 

Leveraging the partnership with PTSB, Sedicii was selected by the Central Bank of Ireland (CBI) as one of just seven companies to take part in the CBI’s first Innovation Sandbox focused on fighting financial crime. By digitizing the Address Verification solution the goal is to demonstrate how new techniques can be deployed to improve the KYC process, reducing the likelihood of financial crime occurring. This is being done  in collaboration with PTSB. 

This solution will impact sectors other than banking, including the pensions, gaming & gambling and healthcare sectors. In the pensions sector, for example, a real challenge for pension administrators is managing the “Certificate of Existence” process where a pension recipient must confirm certain details about themselves. Specifically, is their address current, are they still alive in order to receive their benefits, is their next-of-kin information up-to-date and is their bank account information still correct. This is a manual process today with a paper form having to be witnessed and returned in the post. It is very slow and expensive to administer.  Sedicii is seeking to digitise the process to make it more efficient, less costly and easier for the pensioner to comply with.  

Sedicii is now partnering with Foster Moore to build Europe’s first “Metareg” utilizing our patented ZKP technologies to provide inter-register capabilities for data matching while still protecting all individual’s right to privacy. The Metareg will be the world’s first Super Register which will be driven by a network of APIs to allow a request to one register to be executed concurrently on other registers in the network. 

Collaboration Across Borders Based on Experience in Ireland 

The PHACKS project is focused on collaboration across borders to build a privacy enhanced address verification solution in other EU countries by leveraging a collaboration with an authoritative source for address in that country.  

This solution is of interest to companies in many sectors, including but not limited to finance, pensions, healthcare, supply chain and logistics, law enforcement, tax authorities and wider national and local government. 

Our privacy enhanced Address Verification solution in Ireland is available to companies and organisations anywhere in the world who need to verify name and address in Ireland and Northern Ireland. Companies in logistics and supply chain would benefit from the ability to securely verify addresses in real time. Here’s why: 

• Fewer Delivery Errors – Avoid misdeliveries, returned shipments, and lost packages due to incorrect addresses. 
• Cost Savings – Reduce re-shipping costs, carrier surcharges, and manual correction efforts. 
• Faster Deliveries – Verified addresses mean fewer delays, which improves on-time delivery rates. 
• Better Customer Experience – Fewer issues with shipping lead to happier customers and fewer complaints. 
• Fraud Prevention – Helps detect fake or fraudulent addresses, reducing the risk of fraud. 
• Optimized Route Planning – Accurate addresses improve route efficiency, cutting down transportation costs and delivery times. 

If your supply chain relies on shipping and logistics, address verification can seriously streamline operations and save money.  

Collaborations of the Future 

Our technology has applications that reach far beyond address verification. It can be applied to any instance where there is a need for two parties to verify information but cannot share that data for legal or other commercial reasons. We are currently building collaborative communities around company records and interoperability across companies’ registers and would welcome conversations with parties in other sectors who have to deal with similar challenges. 

How to Participate in PHACKS

If you are inerested in getting involved, please visit our How to Participate page or Contact Us.