Accelerating digital development during the 14th Five-Year Plan period is a national strategy. Establishing a digital trust system is not only an important aspect of building a cybersecurity system but also a crucial component of the digital economy and digital society. The digital trust system is increasingly becoming a vital support and guarantee for the digital transformation of various industries. The slogan "Digital connects the world, trust creates value" has now become a reality.

On May 19, the Trust and Interconnection Convention 2023 was held in Beijing, hosted by the WG4 Working Group of the National Information Security Standardization Technical Committee and the Beijing Commercial Cryptography Industry Association, and organized by the School of Cryptography of the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, FuTURE FORUM, and BJCA. The conference was held under the theme of "Building a Solid Security Barrier to Empower the Digital Future".

In his speech on the theme of the convention, He Liangsheng, Deputy Director of the State Cryptography Administration, put forward three requirements. First, it is important to firmly grasp the correct political direction for building a digital trust system; second, it is imperative to vigorously promote technological and model innovation in digital trust; and third, we shall establish a robust legal governance system for digital trust.

Hu Qiang, the Director of the Beijing Municipal Administration of Cryptography, stated that the new dual-circulation development pattern, both domestically and internationally, is rapidly taking shape. As Beijing accelerates the construction of a global benchmark city for the digital economy, the Administration will focus on policy support, industry collaboration, and platform building to vigorously promote the development and innovative application of cryptography technology and the digital economy. Additionally, the Administration will increase research efforts in "digital trust" technology. Next, the Beijing Municipal Administration of Cryptography will focus on the following three areas. First, it will promote wider integration and application of commercial cryptography and new technologies. Second, it will promote independent innovation of key core technologies and applications. Third, it will strengthen industry regulation.

Wu Hequan, Academician of Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE), delivered a keynote speech on 5G Security Authentication. The fact that 5G networks are open and accessible to multiple terminals and industries has made the security authentication of 5G networks increasingly difficult, according to him. Moreover, as the applications of 5G become more widespread, the scenarios and terminals involved in network access have become increasingly complex, posing new requirements for authentication and authorization. He gave an example, saying that the connection between 5G and the Internet of Things (IoT) requires simplified encryption and authentication protocols due to the large number of IoT terminals and their weak computing power. Furthermore, many IoT terminals do not have USIM cards, making it difficult to apply existing authentication mechanisms. He emphasized the need for continuous innovation in 5G authentication technology.

Feng Dengguo, Academician of Chinese Academy of Sciences, gave a keynote speech on Confidential Computing in Innovative Development and highlighted an important technology that can address data security issues during use—confidential computing. He emphasized that ensuring data security during use is a valuable research frontier, and confidential computing is an important technical approach to address data security issues while maintaining computational efficiency. Feng also provided a detailed overview of the trust model, security architecture, security mechanisms, security use cases for various applications, and stages of technical development for confidential computing. This opened up new perspectives and ideas for the industry on how to achieve secure data flow.

In his talk on "The Technological Route and Applications of Trusted Digital Identity in China," Yu Rui, the Deputy Director of the First Research Institute of the Ministry of Public Security of PRC, pointed out that a trusted digital identity system based on network IDs, network certificates, and network identity can be established. This system can ensure information security and the transmission of the chain of trust by deepening the application of innovative cryptography, constructing a comprehensive cryptography security system that integrates cloud, network, and terminals, and anchoring all three in the legal identity. This approach creates a basis for authentication, evidence for traceability, and a foundation for law enforcement. Yu Rui also provided a detailed overview of the development and application of trusted digital identity in China and revealed that the next step will focus on consolidating platform construction and improving the institutional system. The goal is to continuously enhance digital technology innovation and service capabilities and to actively support the comprehensive governance of the digital space and network society.

In his keynote speech on "Trust Technology in the Digital Age", Wei Kai, Deputy Director of Cloud Computing and Big Data Research Institute at CAICT, stated that the development of the internet has immersed us in the digital economy, but it has also led to trust crises in areas such as data security, controllable identity, mutual trust in transactions, and anchoring of virtual and real identities. To overcome this trust crisis, we need to make use of the features of blockchain technology and combine them with other cutting-edge technologies such as privacy computing, digital identity, distributed data transmission protocols, and big data. By doing so, we can establish a new era of trust technology that bridges the trust gap in the digital age and enables the trustworthy circulation of data elements.

During his speech on "Reflections on the Strategy of Network Trusted Identity", Zuo Xiaodong, Vice President of the Institute for Advanced Research in Science, Technology, and the Humanities at the University Of Science And Technology Of China, suggested that before developing a national strategy for network trusted identity, it is important to consider several key issues. The first one is that the strategy needs to reflect the characteristics of the current era and take into account the rapidly changing environment in which we live. This highlights the need to analyze how the situation and background have evolved. Secondly, "trust" is a psychological expectation that can be achieved through various means and for different purposes. These means and purposes have a significant impact on the content of the strategy, hence it is important to consider how the focus and direction of the work have changed. Furthermore, he also emphasized the importance of considering the connotation and extension of the network trusted identity strategy and the changes that have occurred in the trusted objects.

As the keynote speaker for the final session in the morning, Lin Xueyan, General Manager of BJCA, delivered a speech on "Building a Digital Trust Foundation to Facilitate the Digitalization of Industries". Lin Xueyan stated that digital trust is the foundation of digital transformation, as well as the driving force behind innovation. The digital trust system comprises four fundamental elements, namely trustworthy infrastructure, trustworthy identity, trustworthy data, and trustworthy behavior. Leveraging these elements through various means such as infrastructure, business innovation, data-driven strategies, management reform, and emerging technologies can empower the digital transformation of numerous industries. Lin Xueyan introduced that companies specializing in digital authentication have built a trust foundation for digital transformation by combining infrastructure, product services, and integrated solutions in the digital trust system. Digital authentication is committed to establishing a secure and trustworthy infrastructure for digital transformation, and partnering with clients and partners to build a trustworthy digital world, said Lin.

Trust forms the foundation and prerequisite of digital interactions, enabling countless industries to create incalculable value. At the Forum on Innovative Applications of Digital Trust on the afternoon of May 19, guests from various sectors including government, finance, healthcare, education, scientific research, and enterprise shared the applications of trust in their respective fields. The widespread application of digital trust in areas such as electronic medical records, post-quantum computing, digital government, big data and cloud computing, Internet of Vehicles, and digital transformation provides industry users with more practical references and examples to draw from.

Passwords are the cornerstone of building digital trust, serving as the most reliable, effective, and economical technical means to address issues related to the authenticity of identities, the credibility of online behavior, and the integrity and confidentiality of information within the network of trust. During the Forum on Key Technologies for Digital Trust held on the afternoon of May 19, technical experts from renowned academic institutions, research organizations, and companies such as Huawei and Ant Group gathered together to share their insights and trends on cutting-edge technologies such as confidential Computing, privacy computing, blockchain, and quantum computing. They collectively explored the technological forces behind building digital trust.

At the digital trust exhibition area outside the conference hall, product displays showcased the technology concepts, product matrix, and application scenarios of digital authentication companies in seven subfields of digital trust, highlighting their innovative capabilities. The industry exhibition area demonstrated the innovative applications and customer achievements in various fields such as government affairs, digital governance, healthcare, finance, education, enterprises, and the Internet of Vehicles, showcasing how digital authentication supports the digital transformation of various industries and contributes to the commercial success of their clients, creating a win-win situation for a digital future.