Martel was at present at FOSDEM 2025 with two workshops that sparked lively discussions about our digital future. The conversations ranged from how we protect our identity online to making open source software more accessible across Europe.
One of the events organised by Martel at this years’ FOSDEM, was dedicated to Disposable Digital Identities (watch here the recording).
Picture this: in the past, your identity was simple. You were the baker’s daughter or Jean’s son, known differently to different people in your community. Trust built naturally through these relationships. But in today’s digital world, we’ve lost this natural way of managing our identity. Our phones, homes, and cities are filled with sensors and cameras tracking our every move, often without us knowing.
This is why disposable identities matter. They flip the power dynamic of digital identity on its head. Instead of companies and services collecting and controlling our data, we create temporary, purpose-specific identities that share only what’s needed for each situation. Like showing different sides of yourself to different people in real life, disposable identities let you control how you appear in the digital world.
Think of it as a digital spider web, but with you – not the companies – at the center. You decide what each thread reveals about you. Need to prove you’re old enough to access a service? Create a temporary identity that shows only your age. Want to pay your monthly bills? Generate an identity that simply confirms you can pay. This follows the core principle of data protection: share only what’s necessary, nothing more.
During this session, Andrea D’Intino from dyne.org brought this concept to life. He demonstrated DIDroom, an open-source identity wallet that makes managing these disposable identities practical. The tool follows official standards and works across different platforms, showing how we might navigate digital spaces more privately and securely.
Lorna Goulden then expanded on how disposable identities could transform everyday digital interactions. She explained how these tools do more than just protect privacy – they help rebuild trust in digital services. The approach lets people share verifiable information, like photos or official documents, but with precise control over what’s shared and for how long. Think of it like a digital contract that sets clear boundaries: this piece of information can be used only for this specific purpose, for this amount of time. And because it’s built on tamper-proof technology, both users and services can trust that the information is genuine, without needing to see more than necessary.
Tackling open source adoption
While digital identity tools like DIDroom show the potential of open source software (OSS), getting these solutions widely adopted remains a challenge. In the second workshop, Martel turned to the FOSDEM community to understand why.
Through a fast-paced “speedstorming” session, thirty participants shared their views on what holds back OSS adoption in Europe. Despite its clear benefits – better transparency, lower costs, and technological independence – many organizations still hesitate to embrace open source solutions.
The barriers were clear: most participants pointed to lack of awareness as the main hurdle. Others highlighted practical challenges like being locked into existing vendor contracts, poor user experience, and the simple force of habit. As one participant noted, people tend to stick with what others are using, creating a “network effect” that makes it harder for new solutions to gain ground.
But the community also saw paths forward. The strongest call was to make OSS standard in schools and public offices, creating a foundation for wider adoption. Other suggestions included:
- Better training and communication about OSS benefits
- More institutional support and funding
- Requirements for software interoperability
- Restrictions on forced purchase practices
- Improved user interfaces
Through insights gathered from this co-creation session, the workshop aims to contribute to exchanges with the European Commission’s Units dealing with the European digital ecosystem, providing grassroots perspectives that reflect the real needs of OSS users and contributors. The outputs will feed into the work carried out by Martel Innovate and Digital for Planet on EU-funded cooperation projects in shaping policy roadmaps. They will directly inform projects like NGI Commons, NGI4ALL.E and NexusForum.EU, which aim to bridge the European digital ecosystem and communities with European Commission priorities.
