What Are Trust Frameworks?

Trust frameworks are governance structures that establish the rules, policies, and agreements enabling verifiable digital credentials to be recognized across organizations and jurisdictions. They answer a fundamental question: why should a verifier in one state trust a credential issued in another?

The governance layer

Technical standards define how credentials are formatted and signed. Trust frameworks define who can issue credentials, what policies they must follow, and how verifiers can rely on them. They create the agreements that allow the technical infrastructure to function as a coherent ecosystem.

Without trust frameworks, digital identity would fragment into isolated systems. A credential issued in California wouldn't necessarily be trusted in New York. A bank couldn't know whether to accept an mDL from a different state. Trust frameworks solve this by establishing shared rules that all participants agree to follow.

Key trust frameworks in digital identity

Several trust frameworks shape the U.S. digital identity landscape:

AAMVA’s mDL Digital Trust Service (DTS) supports interoperability by providing relying parties a secure way to obtain issuing authority public keys and related trust material needed to verify mDLs. AAMVA, the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators, represents DMVs across the United States and Canada. Their trust service ensures that a California mDL can be verified at a New York checkpoint because both states participate in a shared framework.

Independent assurance and interoperability testing can be provided by specialized assessment organizations (for example, governance-focused trust framework assessors and technical labs that test ISO/IEC 18013-5 interoperability). For example, Kantara focuses on governance and operational practices, identity proofing, credential lifecycle management, and privacy protections. FIME specializes in technical interoperability testing, particularly for ISO/IEC 18013-5 compliance.

What do trust frameworks establish?

Trust frameworks typically define several key elements, including who can participate as issuers, the identity proofing requirements they must meet, how credentials must be secured and managed, what happens when credentials need to be revoked, and how disputes are resolved.

They may also establish liability allocation, who bears responsibility if something goes wrong, and audit requirements to verify ongoing compliance. These governance structures give verifiers confidence that credentials from participating issuers meet consistent standards.

Cross-jurisdictional trust

Just as REAL ID aimed to align states on standards for physical driver's licenses, digital identity needs governance models for cross-jurisdictional trust. Without them, issuers remain fragmented, and verifiers hesitate to accept out-of-state credentials.

Federal leadership plays an important role here. DHS and NIST have convened stakeholders to develop shared approaches. The NIST National Cybersecurity Center of Excellence (NCCoE) has brought together banks, state agencies, and technology providers to demonstrate how mDLs can satisfy financial compliance requirements, building the evidence base that regulators need to endorse verifiable digital credentials.

Trust frameworks and privacy

Well-designed trust frameworks also establish privacy protections. They may require that verifiers practice data minimization, that issuers support selective disclosure, or that credentials enable offline verification to prevent tracking. Utah Code § 63A-16-1202, for example, establishes a statutory framework that mandates specific privacy protections for state-endorsed digital identity.

Trust frameworks translate policy goals into enforceable requirements that all ecosystem participants must follow. They ensure that privacy isn't just a technical feature but a governance commitment.