PalCert: A Blockchain-based Certificate Attestation and Verification System for HEIs in Palestine

The verification and attestation process of academic certificates in Palestine occurs through semi- or entirely non-computerized procedures. It requires manual operations and verification from the Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE). The technology of blockchain has the potential to develop and digitalize this process, reducing the amount of time and effort required. In this chapter, we propose a verification and attestation system (called PalCert). It is based on blockchain technology to overcome the difficulties that any graduate, researcher, or job seeker faces when attesting, evaluating, and accrediting Palestinian academic certificates. In this work, we present the architecture, design, and implementation of the PalCert system. An Ethereum-based model is used to evaluate the proposed architecture’s performance and feasibility. We use Solidity to write smart contracts and evaluate the proposed framework using the Ethereum Ropsten network. The aim is to create an ecosystem based on an open and permissionless blockchain where HEIs can register and start issuing certificates, and then MOHE staff members attest the certificates upon the request of the graduates after they have paid the fees. We find that the proposed approach complies with Palestinian law and with MOHE requirements. It may be further enhanced to provide more privacy assurances. Finally, when we compare PalCert with different prominent platforms, the analysis shows that PalCert outperforms other platforms in most of the required functionalities.