Zamna wants to put airport identity verification on blockchain

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London-based startup company Zamna announced that they have developed a blockchain-based data verification platform that will more securely and efficiently connect passenger data between airlines, security agencies, and governments. This is expected to greatly streamline and improve efficiency at airport check-in and security stations.

The startup company, which was formally known as VChain Technology, announced that they had raised $5 million toward enhancing the airport security checkpoints, working to make this an automated system. The funding was led by LocalGlobe and Oxford Capital, with supplementary support provided by Seedcamp, the London Co-Investment Fund, Telefónica and airline group IAG. Additional funding was provided by angel investors.

Zamna’s software instantly verifies passenger data, removing any need for manual document checks at the airport. The entire system is powered using blockchain technology, simplifying the process because it enables information held on different networks to still be accessed securely and efficiently.

In discussing the new platform, a spokesperson for Zamna explained, “The aspiration is that, as more passenger identities are verified digitally over time and shared securely between parties, the airport security process will become automated and passengers will be able to travel through the airport without needing any physical documentation or repeated ID checks.”

The exact details of how this system works is pretty fascinating. Passenger data is validated for accuracy during the check-in process. Any discrepancy where the passenger data does not match the passport or other form of ID immediately sends a signal that the information does not match. This is all conducted by a proprietary privacy-by-design algorithm known as the Advanced Passenger Information data.

“We know that currently, airlines are not able to meet the legal requirement of providing accurate data to governments around the world,” exaplained Irra Ariella Khi, co-founder and CEO of Zamna, in a statement. “Both parties have to spend a huge amount of time and resource at the end of a journey to confirm if a passenger should be allowed into a country, or sent back if access is denied. In 2019, these decisions should be securely automated and informed by high integrity data – long before the journey even begins.”