# Capability-based access control for multi-tenant systems using OAuth 2.0 and Verifiable Credentials

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2104.11515 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2104.11515/

## Key facts

- Cited by 2 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- First posted on arXiv 23 Apr 2021.

## Built on by (most cited first, 2 of 2)

- [How Agents Ask for Permission: User Permissions for AI Agents, from Interfaces to Enforcement](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2607.13718/) (2026)
- [LLM-Driven Auto Configuration for Transient IoT Device Collaboration](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2507.03064/) (2025)

## Abstract (arXiv)

We propose a capability-based access control technique for sharing Web resources, based on Verifiable Credentials (VCs) and OAuth 2.0. VCs are a secure means for expressing claims about a subject. Although VCs are ideal for encoding capabilities, the lack of standards for exchanging and using VCs impedes their adoption and limits their interoperability. We mitigate this problem by integrating VCs into the OAuth 2.0 authorization flow. To this end, we propose a new form of OAuth 2.0 access token based on VCs. Our approach leverages JSON Web Tokens (JWT) to encode VCs and takes advantage of JWT-based mechanisms for proving VC possession. Our solution not only requires minimum changes to existing OAuth 2.0 code bases, but it also removes some of the complexity of verifying VC claims by relying on JSON Web Signatures: a simple, standardized, and well supported signature format. Additionally, we fill the gap of VC generation processes by defining a new protocol that leverages the OAuth 2.0 "client credentials" grant.