2 years ago
The satellite wide web was primitively designed to beryllium transparent, inclusive, and unfastened to all. However, arsenic exertion progressed, the archetypal imaginativeness was mostly abandoned, starring to an overly centralized online ecosystem.
Web 2.0, the mentation of the net that we are presently surviving and astir acquainted with, has respective drawbacks that we seldom discuss. Most of these problems stem from the information that astir Web 2.0 relies connected integer identifiers.
But what are these “digital identifiers,” and wherefore bash they matter?
In the simplest terms, integer identifiers are utilized by third-party work providers to validate a user’s identity. These are chiefly managed by large tech companies similar Facebook, Google, Amazon, web operators, email work providers, and different online platforms that let users to entree the satellite wide web.
A communal illustration of integer identifiers is the OAuth2 option, which astir everyone uses. You are asked to registry whenever you privation to entree a caller platform, specified arsenic an eCommerce store oregon a societal media app. To marque registration casual for users, galore platforms employment OAuth2 – the diagnostic that allows users to registry done their existing Google oregon societal media accounts directly.
The Data Privacy Woes Surrounding Web2-Based Identifiers
On 1 end, Web 2.0-based features similar OAuth2 person surely made beingness easier for the end-users. But, astatine the aforesaid time, our dependency connected these centralized platforms has led to important information privateness issues.
Why so?
The information harvested by these centralized platforms are usually stored successful centralized servers, making it a straightforward people for hackers. Since users don’t person immoderate power implicit their information stored successful these servers, information tin beryllium readily misused, often without the user’s consent. In caller years, determination person been thousands of instances wherever hackers person leaked tons of idiosyncratic identifiable accusation (PII), starring to crimes similar individuality theft, funds siphoning, targeted ransomware attacks, and overmuch more.
Although respective attempts to flooded this occupation person been attempted, nary solution exists successful the Web 2.0 realm to date. That said, the concern is poised for a drastic change. By harnessing the powerfulness of blockchain, respective promising solutions are offering a caller diagnostic called decentralized identifiers (DIDs) designed to reconstruct implicit power of information to users portion maintaining high-level information privateness and security.
Redefining Data Boundaries With Decentralized Identifiers
New solutions that alteration anyone to beryllium their individuality online without relying connected centralized organizations are already disrupting the Web2 approach. These efforts person fixed commencement to the thought of ‘decentralized identity’ oregon DID, a disruptive attack to individuality and entree absorption (IAM).
The astir invaluable nonsubjective of decentralized identities is establishing planetary standards that let each net users to efficaciously power which online applications and services tin entree their idiosyncratic information. Moreover, it volition besides assistance bounds the magnitude of PII shared with apps and services.
Per the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), “A Decentralized Identifier (DID) is simply a caller benignant of identifier that is globally unique, resolvable with precocious availability, and cryptographically verifiable. DIDs are typically associated with cryptographic material, specified arsenic nationalist keys, and work endpoints, for establishing unafraid connection channels. DIDs are utile for immoderate exertion that benefits from self-administered, cryptographically verifiable identifiers specified arsenic idiosyncratic identifiers, organizational identifiers, and identifiers for Internet of Things scenarios.”
To clarify, DIDs speech accusation connected a peer-to-peer (P2P) basis. No centralized intermediaries store idiosyncratic information oregon facilitate the speech of data. Since the speech happens straight betwixt the sender and the receiver, DIDs are acold much unafraid than existing identifiers.
The champion portion astir DIDs is that determination is nary bounds to the amount. Different identifiers tin beryllium deployed for assorted applications and services, reducing the likelihood of snooping connected idiosyncratic information. On apical of it, DID users tin power the grade of the information shared oregon restrict entree arsenic and erstwhile needed.
Imagine a script wherever a definite exertion asks to verify age. For Web2-powered identifiers, users indispensable stock each applicable and requested information. But with a DID, users simply beryllium property without adjacent revealing a commencement date.
One specified blockchain-based level spearheading the mainstream usage of DIDs is KILT Protocol. Developed by BOTLabs GmbH, KILT is simply a afloat decentralized, open-source protocol that allows users to correspond and beryllium their online identities without revealing immoderate idiosyncratic accusation they privation to stay private.
The KILT squad precocious launched its flagship solution called SocialKYC, a decentralized individuality verification work that allows users to manage, store, and stock circumstantial idiosyncratic accusation for accessing online services themselves. While the work presently works with Twitter and email, the KILT squad is expanding its usage crossed different salient societal media platforms similar Twitch, Discord, Github, TikTok, LinkedIn, and others.
With Web 3.0 conscionable astir the corner, DIDs volition play a cardinal relation successful ensuring that users (and entities) are nary longer taxable to the whims and fancies of centralized intermediaries. DIDs are poised to alteration the mode we person been utilizing the net truthful far, yet giving america backmost implicit power implicit our idiosyncratic data.
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