How to create an Internet Identity

In order to access and interact with applications running on the Internet Computer, it is often necessary for users to authenticate. One of the most commonly used methods to authenticate on the Internet Computer is via Internet Identity.

Getting Started

Suppose you want to interact with dapps running on the Internet Computer. It's often the case that you will need to authenticate or login to access and use the features of the dapp. Currently, the easiest way to authenticate is by using an identity anchor obtained from the II.

The quickest way to get started with this, is to navigate directly to the Internet Identity dapp: https://identity.ic0.app/ Here, you will be welcomed with a screen prompting you to enter your Identity Anchor. If you are just getting started, then you need to create an identity anchor by clicking on the link.

Alternatively, if you are trying to access a dapp, for example the NNS frontend dapp, you will see that you are prompted to login. When clicking the login button, you will be redirected to the II frontend dapp where you can either login if you have an Identity Anchor, or create a new one if you don't.

Creating an Anchor

After selecting that you would like to create an Internet Identity Anchor on the II dapp homepage, you will be brought to a screen where you are prompted to provide the name of the device on which you are generating the Anchor. Upon entering the device name, your device will prompt you to allow "identity.ic0.app" to use Face ID, or the fingerprint scanner, or to use a security key. Once you grant access, you will be redirected to solve a captcha. After solving this, you will be prompted to choose an account to sign in to "identity.ic0.app". Here you can select the sign in with the Passkey (which was generated and is stored on your device) or you can choose to sign in with an external security key. After that, you will be redirected to a screen which displays your newly created Identity Anchor! Note that on this screen there is a suggestion to record your Identity Anchor number. This is the number that you will need to enter to authenticate to dapps running on the IC.

Account recovery

After creating your Identity Anchor, you will be directed to a page that allows to add a recovery mechanism, or to skip this step. There is a warning here, which notes that if you browser history is cleared, your authentication keys will be deleted from this device. For this reason, it's highly recommended to assign multiple devices or to use a security key or a seed phrase as a recovery mechanism. When you select to add a recovery mechanism, you are given two choices; either generate a seed phrase which you should store securely or to use an extra security key. If you are used to using digital wallets, perhaps you are used to securely maintaining seed phrases. Otherwise, you can choose to use the security key. Only if you are sure that you will not need to remember this Anchor should you skip this step.

Key Features

Ease of Use

Internet Identity provides a secure way for users to generate identity anchors and authenticate to applications running on the Internet Computer without the need to remember and manage passwords.

Privacy

No personal identifying information is needed to generate an anchor and as Internet Identity generates different pseudonyms for different applications, privacy is provided for users as interactions across dapps cannot be tracked.

Availability

Since an anchor's key material is generated and stored on the user's device, it is not the case that a particular service or application can hinder the availability of an individual's anchor as a method of authentication.

FAQ

How do I get an Identity Anchor from Internet Identity?

The one and only place to generate an Identity Anchor is to visit https://identity.ic0.app/.

Detailed instructions can be found by visiting https://smartcontracts.org/docs/ic-identity-guide/auth-how-to.html

Do I really need to link another device or save the seed-phrase?

Although it is not necessary, it is really useful to link another device or to save the seed-phrase in case you lose access to your Identity Anchor on a particular device. Further, as your Identity Anchor may be used to generate accounts for wallets or dapps, access to these may also be lost if you lose access to your Identity Anchor.

What happens if I lose my device?

If you lose your device and want to recover, you can click on the 'Lost access and want to recover' link at https://identity.ic0.app/.

If you have an Identity Anchor tied to only one device and you lose that one device, you will be locked out. As a best practice, we recommend adding multiple devices and recovery mechanisms to every Identity Anchor.

How can I add more devices?

If you want to add another device, you can click on the 'Already have an anchor but using a new device?' link at https://identity.ic0.app/

Detailed instructions can be found here: https://smartcontracts.org/docs/ic-identity-guide/auth-how-to.html#_add_a_device

Does Internet Identity share my personal information with dapps when I authenticate?

No. Internet Identity uses a different Principal (a "pseudonym") for each dapp that you authenticate to using Internet Identity. Since the pseudonyms Internet Identity generates for you are different for each dapp, dapps cannot use them to track you outside of their realm.

Does Internet Identity support Windows Hello?

Yes! Internet Identity supports authenticating via Windows Hello. If Windows Hello is set up on your PC then Internet Identity will offer you to authenticate through Windows Hello.

Detailed instructions can be found here: https://smartcontracts.org/docs/ic-identity-guide/hello-guide.html

Why can't I log in with a new device?

If you can't log in with an existing Identity Anchor, it may be the case that the anchor hasn't been added to the new device. If this is the case, simply visit https://identity.ic0.app/ , click on the 'Already have an anchor but using a new device?' link, add the device and try again.

It may also be the case that the face ID or the fingerprint system is not enabled on the device. Ensure that these are enabled, and try to log in again.

Is there a way to revoke a dapp's access to my Identity Anchor?

There is no explicit revocation method, but privilege delegation to Internet Identity is limited in time, so will expire. Alternatively, simply once the browser tab is closed, the delegation is gone.