Academic credentials, verified in seconds
Credence uses Hyperledger Fabric to create a tamper-proof, decentralized record of academic credentials issued by Nigerian universities. Employers verify instantly. Fraud becomes impossible.
Graduate
Adebayo O. Johnson
CGPA
4.72 / 5.0
Degree
B.Tech, Computing
Graduated
2024
Class
First Class Honours
Institution
FUTA
SHA-256 Hash
a3f8c2d1e4b97f2e...8c2d1a4f
Block Number
#00000412
Timestamp
2024-11-15 09:23:41
Blockchain Verified
No tampering detected
Under 60 Seconds
Real-time chain query
Nigeria has a credential crisis
Millions of Nigerians graduate each year into a system where their credentials can be easily forged, are slow to verify, and are stored in fragile, disconnected archives.
Certificate Falsification
Fraudulent graduates present forged degrees to secure positions in healthcare, engineering, and finance, posing significant public safety risks.
Weeks of Processing Time
Manual verification through university registrars takes weeks or months, costing graduates employment opportunities and employers operational time.
Fragile Paper Records
Universities rely on paper-based archives prone to degradation, fire, and human error with no standardized digital backup infrastructure.
International Reputation Risk
Nigerian graduates face stricter and more expensive verification requirements from foreign employers due to widespread credential fraud.
Credence ends the credential crisis
Built on Hyperledger Fabric, Credence gives FUTA the infrastructure to issue tamper-proof digital credentials that any employer can verify in under 60 seconds, anywhere in the world.
Three steps from issuance to verification
Credence connects the moment a university issues a credential to the moment an employer verifies it, with zero possibility of tampering in between.
Credential Issuance
A FUTA administrator issues a digital certificate for a verified graduate. The system fetches the graduate details, generates a SHA-256 hash of the credential data, and records it permanently on the Hyperledger Fabric blockchain.
Certificate Delivery
The graduate receives a beautifully branded PDF certificate containing their academic details, a unique certificate key, and an embedded QR code. The certificate can be downloaded at any time from their personal dashboard.
Instant Verification
An employer scans the QR code or enters the certificate key on the Credence platform. The system queries the Hyperledger Fabric ledger and returns a cryptographic verification result in under 60 seconds, including the exact blockchain timestamp.
Cryptographic truth, not institutional trust
The verification process does not rely on a phone call to a registrar or a manual database lookup. It relies on the mathematical certainty of SHA-256 hashing and the immutability of the Hyperledger Fabric ledger.
| 1 | // Credence Verification Engine |
| 2 | // Hyperledger Fabric Chaincode |
| 3 | |
| 4 | async function verifyCertificate(ctx, certificateKey) { |
| 5 | const startTime = Date.now(); |
| 6 | |
| 7 | // Query the blockchain ledger |
| 8 | const ledgerRecord = await ctx.stub.getState(certificateKey); |
| 9 | |
| 10 | if (!ledgerRecord || ledgerRecord.length === 0) { |
| 11 | return { |
| 12 | status: "NOT_FOUND", |
| 13 | verified: false, |
| 14 | message: "Certificate not found on ledger", |
| 15 | }; |
| 16 | } |
| 17 | |
| 18 | const certificate = JSON.parse(ledgerRecord.toString()); |
| 19 | |
| 20 | // Validate certificate status |
| 21 | if (certificate.status === "REVOKED") { |
| 22 | return { |
| 23 | status: "REVOKED", |
| 24 | verified: false, |
| 25 | revokedAt: certificate.revokedAt, |
| 26 | reason: certificate.revokedReason, |
| 27 | }; |
| 28 | } |
| 29 | |
| 30 | // Compute SHA-256 hash of current record |
| 31 | const currentHash = sha256(JSON.stringify({ |
| 32 | graduateName: certificate.graduateName, |
| 33 | matricNumber: certificate.matricNumber, |
| 34 | faculty: certificate.faculty, |
| 35 | cgpa: certificate.cgpa, |
| 36 | graduationYear: certificate.graduationYear, |
| 37 | })); |
| 38 | |
| 39 | // Compare with stored hash |
| 40 | const isAuthentic = currentHash === certificate.blockchainHash; |
| 41 | const elapsed = Date.now() - startTime; |
| 42 | |
| 43 | return { |
| 44 | status: isAuthentic ? "VERIFIED" : "TAMPERED", |
| 45 | verified: isAuthentic, |
| 46 | graduate: certificate.graduateName, |
| 47 | institution: "Federal University of Technology, Akure", |
| 48 | classOfDegree: certificate.classOfDegree, |
| 49 | issuedAt: certificate.issuedAt, |
| 50 | blockchainTimestamp: certificate.txTimestamp, |
| 51 | verificationTimeMs: elapsed, // < 60,000ms guaranteed |
| 52 | }; |
| 53 | } |
Built for every stakeholder in the ecosystem
Whether you issue credentials, hold them, or need to verify them, Credence provides a purpose-built experience.
Cryptographic Security Meets Academic Integrity
Our system leverages advanced cryptographic mathematics to ensure tamper-proof credentials with collision probability of 2-256.
SHA-256 Cryptographic Hash
Each certificate generates a unique 256-bit hash using the SHA-256 algorithm:
Collision Probability: 2-256 (practically impossible)
Merkle Tree Verification
Efficient verification using Merkle tree structure with O(log n) complexity:
Verification Time: <60 seconds guaranteed
Digital Signatures
Elliptic Curve Digital Signature Algorithm (ECDSA) for authentication:
Security Level: 128-bit cryptographic security
Certificate Integrity Formula
Enterprise-grade blockchain for education
Credence is built on Hyperledger Fabric, the same permissioned blockchain framework used by global enterprises for supply chain, finance, and healthcare. Now applied to academic credentials in Nigeria.
SHA-256 Hashing
Every certificate is reduced to a unique 64-character fingerprint, making any tampering instantly detectable.
Hyperledger Fabric
A permissioned enterprise blockchain where only authorized FUTA participants can write transactions.
NDPR-Compliant Private Channels
Fabric channels keep credential data private and visible only to authorized parties at all times.
Blockchain Consortium System
A permissioned blockchain network where FUTA maintains full control over the academic credential ecosystem, ensuring data privacy while providing immutable verification capabilities.
Orderer
Raft
Peer 3
Endorser
Peer 2
Committer
FabConnect
REST API
Cert Auth
CA Node
Peer 1
Endorser
Transaction Flow Architecture
Certificate Issuance
Admin creates certificate
Hash Generation
SHA-256 fingerprint created
Blockchain Write
Hash stored on ledger
Verification Query
Employer verifies authenticity
Certificate Issuance
Admin creates certificate
Hash Generation
SHA-256 fingerprint created
Blockchain Write
Hash stored on ledger
Verification Query
Employer verifies authenticity
A final year research project from FUTA
Credence is the practical implementation of a final year dissertation submitted to the Department of Information Systems, School of Computing, Federal University of Technology Akure. It demonstrates how Hyperledger Fabric can be applied to solve real credential verification challenges in Nigerian higher education.
"The solution shifts the trust model from institutional trust to cryptographic trust, relying on the mathematical certainty of SHA-256 hashing and the immutability of a permissioned blockchain."