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1EdTech · IMS Global · W3C VC profile

OpenBadges 3.0for India's micro-credential economy

What OpenBadges 3.0 (OB3) is, why it's a W3C Verifiable Credential profile, how it aligns with NSQF and NCVET, and where it fits across NEP 2020 micro-credentials, skilling missions, and corporate learning in India.

What OB3 is, in plain language

OpenBadges 3.0 is the global standard for digital micro-credentials, maintained by 1EdTech (formerly IMS Global). The 3.0 release re-architects OpenBadges as a profile of the W3C Verifiable Credentials Data Model — which means every OB3 badge is a valid W3C VC and lives in the same wallets, with the same cryptographic guarantees, as government-issued IDs and university degree credentials.

For India, OB3 is the right format for the long tail of learning that doesn't come with a registrar's embossed seal: skilling-mission completions, corporate L&D modules, NEP 2020 micro-credentials between formal exits, hackathon awards, internship endorsements, and continuous professional development credits. These are precisely the credentials that PDFs verify badly and that an employer's ATS cannot machine-read at scale.

OB3 vs OB2 — what changed and why it matters

If a vendor still pitches OpenBadges 2.0 in 2026, ask why. The differences below explain why OB2 fails at internet-scale verification and why every modern credential platform should issue OB3.

AspectOpenBadges 2.0OpenBadges 3.0Why it matters
Underlying data modelProprietary OpenBadges 2.0 JSONW3C Verifiable Credentials JSON-LDOB3 is a VC profile — every OB3 badge is a valid W3C VC.
Cryptographic proofHosted-assertion or signed-assertion (SHA-256)Linked-data proofs (Ed25519, JSON Web Signatures, BBS+)OB3 supports modern proof types including selective disclosure.
Identifier modelEmail or URLDID (Decentralized Identifier)DIDs decouple holder identity from email addresses that change.
Verification flowHTTP fetch from issuer host (issuer must stay online)Cryptographic verification via DID resolution — no host call requiredAn OB2 badge becomes unverifiable if the issuer's server goes down. OB3 doesn't.
Wallet interoperabilityMozilla Backpack (deprecated), badge-specific walletsAny W3C VC wallet — Microsoft Authenticator, Lissi, Trinsic, DigiLocker (with VC wrapper)OB3 lives in the same wallets as government IDs and academic VCs.

Where OB3 fits in India

Four ecosystems are waiting for proper micro-credential infrastructure. OB3 is the format that lets all four interoperate.

Skilling missions (NSDC, state skill councils)

PMKVY, Skill India Mission, and state skilling councils issue millions of micro-credentials per year — currently as PDFs that hiring teams cannot verify at scale. OB3 turns each completion into an instantly verifiable badge that maps to NSQF levels and stacks into ABC credit transactions.

NCVET-recognised assessment bodies

Sector Skill Councils and certification bodies under the National Council for Vocational Education and Training can issue OB3 badges that carry the NCVET QP/NOS code, making each credential machine-resolvable to its assessment standard.

Corporate L&D and continuous learning

Indian enterprises spend ~₹3,000 crore annually on internal upskilling. OB3 lets that learning travel with the employee across companies — the badge sits in the employee's wallet, not in an LMS that gets retired.

University micro-credentials under NEP 2020

Multi-disciplinary, multi-entry/exit programmes need bite-sized credentials between formal exits. OB3 micro-credentials stack into ABC credits, count toward Diploma and Bachelor exits, and are independently presentable for hiring before the larger degree completes.

The five OB3 components, briefly

If your team is evaluating an OB3 platform, ask the vendor to show you all five. A platform that only handles AchievementCredential is incomplete.

Achievement

What was earned — the badge class. Includes name, description, image, alignment to NSQF/NCVET/QP-NOS, criteria, and skills tags.

AchievementCredential (the VC)

The signed, holder-bound issuance of an Achievement to a specific learner. This is the W3C Verifiable Credential — what gets stored in the wallet and presented for verification.

Profile

Issuer profile and Holder profile. Both can be DIDs. The issuer profile carries verification methods (public keys) used by verifiers to check signatures.

Endorsement

A signed statement from a third party (industry body, employer, faculty) attesting to a badge's value. Endorsements are themselves OB3 credentials — recursively verifiable.

ResultDescription

Captures assessment evidence: score, percentile, examiner, evidence URL. Lets a verifier see not just that a learner earned the badge but how it was earned.

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W3C Verifiable Credentials in India

The data model that OB3 sits on top of.

NEP 2020 + ABC playbook

Stack OB3 micro-credentials into ABC credit transactions.

DigiLocker integration

Where OB3 badges live in the citizen-facing wallet.

OpenBadges 3.0 FAQs

Is OpenBadges 3.0 a competitor to W3C Verifiable Credentials?+
No — OB3 is a profile of W3C VC. Every OB3 credential is a valid W3C Verifiable Credential with a specific schema for educational achievements. If your platform supports W3C VC properly, it supports OB3 with a small mapping layer.
Should an Indian skilling body use OB2 or OB3?+
OB3, unless there is a hard reason not to. OB2 has known interop and verification problems and the standards body (1EdTech) is now focused on OB3. International recognition increasingly requires OB3 because of its W3C VC alignment — a critical consideration for credentials that may travel with workers to GCC/UK/US labour markets.
How does OB3 align with NSQF levels?+
OB3 has a first-class Alignment field. Each badge can declare alignment to NSQF Level X, the QP/NOS code, and the Sector Skill Council's certification framework. Verifiers can query this alignment programmatically — for example, an employer's ATS can match a candidate's stack of OB3 badges to a job requirement at a specific NSQF level.
Can OB3 badges be revoked?+
Yes. OB3 supports status lists (e.g., StatusList 2021), so an issuer can revoke a credential by flipping a bit in a published status list. Verifiers check the status list as part of verification. This works without the issuer needing to call every wallet that holds the credential.
Does OB3 work with DigiLocker?+
Yes, with a wrapper. DigiLocker accepts issued documents in its XML envelope; the OB3 credential is carried as an attached W3C VC reference inside the DigiLocker entry. Citizens see the badge in their DigiLocker app; international verifiers can resolve the underlying VC.
How does Gradify Labs implement OB3?+
Gradify issues OB3-conformant credentials with Ed25519 linked-data proofs, anchored on Solana for tamper-evidence. We support all five OB3 components (Achievement, AchievementCredential, Profile, Endorsement, ResultDescription), with NSQF/QP-NOS alignment fields surfaced as first-class metadata. Verifiers can use any W3C VC wallet or our public verifier.

Issue OB3 micro-credentials at skilling-mission scale

Whether you're a Sector Skill Council, a state skilling mission, a university running NEP 2020 micro-credentials, or a corporate L&D team — Gradify ships OB3-conformant issuance with NSQF and ABC alignment built in.

Talk to our team