Originator Profile Technology overview

Originator Profile (OP) is a technology for realising a digital society in which the authenticity and trustworthiness of the creators and originator of information circulating on the web can be verified. This technology makes it possible to identify the originators of information, establishes a mechanism for readers to easily distinguish content from third-party verified information originators, and prevents the proliferation of dis/misinformation and ad fraud and so on.

OP technology uses digital signature technology to ensure that information originators, such as web content creators and site operators, are not making any mistakes and that the content has not been tampered with (authenticity of information originator). It also makes it possible to confirm that information originators have information transmission policies that act as responsible senders and strive to establish governance that makes the policies effective according to the actual circumstances of their industry and business type, so that it can serve as an indicator for rationally estimating and judging a certain level of trust in the content (trustworthiness of information originator).

Please see the “Originator Profile Charter” for the direction of the digital society that OP technology aims for and the basic attitude required of information originators.

While the development of information technology and the web has brought various benefits to society, it has also given rise to new issues, such as the spread of dis/misinformation and slander, and the decline in the trust of news. The aim is to solve the problems that technology has created with technology. The Originator Profile Collaborative Innovation Partnership (OP CIP) was established to research and develop such technology. For more details on the background and purpose of the establishment of OP CIP, please see the following message from the Chief Director.

Message from Chief Director

The Net has brought great benefits to us, but it has also created new problems such as the spread of fake news. We are proposing OP as a tech to solve these problems.

Articles about Originator Profile

For more information about Originator Profile, please see the following media articles.

• OP: Japan’s initiative to ensure the authenticity of internet content (THE JAPAN TIMES)
  • Article in THE JAPAN TIMES feature article ‘Japan turns 60 in OECD: Future plans, leading universities’, explaining how and why the development of OP technology was initiated.
• (Japanese) Improving trust of Online articles and advertisements: … Professor Jun Murai of Keio University [Capitalism at a Crossroads] Special Edition: Information Crisis in the Digital Age: Yomiuri Shimbun (yomiuri.co.jp)
  • Interview with Jun Murai, Chief Director of OP CIP, on the background, objectives and expectations of starting OP technology development.
• (Japanese) Internet white paper 2024
  • In Part 3, Internet and Social Systems, the article explains the vision and function of OP, the expected effects of OP, and the future development.

A more detailed explanation of Originator Profile technology will be posted on this page as soon as it is available.