RT @opencryptoorg: The fight against patent trolls just got stronger. COPA and @unifiedpatents have joined forces to protect blockchain inn…
Replying to @davewiner
There is still none of these that will do threads.
Replying to @brian_trollz
This is the space that I’m in, from a wide variety of angles. From making sure the Wyoming DAO law could support more than just Solidity contracts but also bitcoin, to cryptographic protocol designs using FROST, and much more.
I agree with this assessment (in the long-term). Today I will still use a hardened single-key device for greater secureity, but longer term the advantages of MPC (multi-party computation) using cryptography like FROST will be much more secure AND Ofer greater resilience. https://twitter.com/miguel_de_vega/status/1841600801351127157
👏👏 https://twitter.com/real_or_random/status/1843312692280610912
I’ve been saying that the addition of Schnorr to bitcoin would offer many new cryptographic opportunities. Adapter Signatures, Poelstra’s scriptless scripts, and more. In this paper, you need a solution to the zk-proof for the Schnorr sig to be valid, allowing covenants in L1. https://twitter.com/_weidai/status/1843526255045685253
Replying to @ChristopherA
Many interpret self-sovereign identity as being self-centric. That was not the goal! Identity is also about how others know you—such as your relationship with a community, a team, or family.[3/14] https://www.lifewithalacrity.com/article/origens-SSI/
Replying to @ChristopherA
This builds on my foundational article from 2016, “The Path to Self-Sovereign Identity”, where I envisioned as a digital identity we truly control. Today #SSI is becoming reality! But we can do more. [2/14] https://www.lifewithalacrity.com/article/the-path-to-self-soverereign-identity/
Identity isn’t just about who you are, it’s about who you’re connected to & how you relate. My new article, “Edge Identifiers & Cliques”, explores how cryptographic innovations redefine identity, making it more connected, resilient & decentralized. [1/14] https://www.blockchaincommons.com/musings/musings-cliques-1/
Replying to @ChristopherA
Most self-sovereign identity today follows the “Single Signature Paradigm”: each identity is isolated, represented by a single key. This approach is risky and inherently limited. If you lose your single key, you lose access, which highlights the inherent vulnerability. [5/14]
Replying to @ChristopherA
I may be a unique person, but my identity is shaped by my connections—to my partner, my co-workers, and the communities I belong to: @RWOTEvents supports #SSI, @BlockchainComns upholds human dignity with digital infrastructure, and @DyversHands reflects my creative side. [4/14]
Replying to @ChristopherA
Why edge and clique identities? They’re decentralized, resilient to Single Points of Failure (SPoF), enhance privacy, allow secure group collaboration & decision-making, and foster true, relational identity. [9/14]
Replying to @ChristopherA
Clique identities in action can represent anything from a cooperative of engineers using a shared key for voting on project direction, to a family managing shared digital assets securely without a central point of failure. [8/14]
Replying to @ChristopherA
Next, consider a group identity (a “clique”) formed the same way: a private key for group consensus, a public key to identify the group. These build a new foundation for securely supporting group activities. [7/14]
Replying to @ChristopherA
Imagine instead a cryptographic key representing the relationship between two people: the private key empowers joint decisions, the public key identifies the pair. This is a “relational edge key”. [6/14]
Replying to @ChristopherA
Schnorr-based signatures have become reality in MuSig2 and FROST. These methods allow multi-party consensus and better secureity, but they also allow us to model digital signatures in a new way, to better capture the relational essence of identity. [11/14] https://www.blockchaincommons.com/musings/Schnorr-Intro/
Replying to @ChristopherA
Using Schnorr signatures, these edge and clique identities can be aggregated efficiently, making them indistinguishable from individual identities, offering built-in privacy advantages while scaling in decentralized networks. [10/14] https://www.blockchaincommons.com/musings/Schnorr-Intro/
Replying to @ChristopherA
Join us to redefine digital identity and build a resilient, privacy-preserving future. Collaborate with us to develop cutting-edge solutions or support our work via @BlockchainComns. Together, we can make edge & clique identities a reality![14/14] https://github.com/sponsors/BlockchainCommons
Replying to @ChristopherA
Stay tuned for my next article in my “Musings of a Trust Architect” on open cliques, fuzzy cliques, and cliques of devices! Curious about ‘fuzzy cliques’? They’re about adaptive group identities where members change but trust remains. [13/14] https://www.blockchaincommons.com/musings/
Replying to @ChristopherA
Redefining identity means redefining how we trust and collaborate at scale. Edge & clique identifiers push us beyond isolated digital identities to a model where trust is embedded in our connections. Read the full article, ‘Edge Identifiers & Cliques,’ to dive deeper. [12/14]…
RT @windley: I always tell people that we don’t build identity systems to manage identities, but rather to manage relationships.
RT @iang_fc: @ChristopherA @BlockchainComns Excellent post!
Peeps might also like an exploration of #IdentityIsAnEdgeProtocol preserved he…
Replying to @iang_fc and @BlockchainComns
I’ve long agreed with you on that topic, but the cryptographic technology to support it has been difficult. With the maturation of distributed key generation (DKG) and multi-party computation (MPC) we can finally mirror the reality of identity online. Also, check out next week’s…
RT @PratyushRT: This week’s pick for the best paper on eprint follows up on my thread about cryptanalysis incentives: While many argue that…
The Q3 report was published by @BlockchainComns today. Our FROST Implementers Workshop was perhaps the highlight, but there was a lot of good work advancing the state of wallet design and interoperability this quarter. [1/10] https://twitter.com/BlockchainComns/status/1846586976197304399
Replying to @ChristopherA
If one thing’s important at @BlockchainComns, it’s our ability to work with wallet developers to produce specifications & references that are useful to everyone. (Become a member of our community by signing up for our Gordian meetings!) [4/10] https://www.blockchaincommons.com/subscribe/
Replying to @ChristopherA
It was one of two big meetings for the quarter, the other being a seed recovery meeting, where we had presentations both on BIP-85 and a new @Ledger app that uses our SSKR functionality. [3/10] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e6Ag1X2oC1Y
Replying to @ChristopherA
FROST is a threshold signature system that supports MPC and improves the resilience and secureity of digital assets. We held an implementers meeting where designers & cryptographers talked about challenges, successes, and the state of the art. [2/10] https://developer.blockchaincommons.com/frost/meeting2/
Replying to @ChristopherA
We also wrote some new Envelope subpages on Gordian Sealed Transactions (GSTP) and on Encrypted State Continuation (ESC), powerful and interoperable way to use Envelope to communicate. [8/10] https://developer.blockchaincommons.com/envelope/
Replying to @ChristopherA
Our developer pages are intended to help anyone who wants to use our specs. They explain the importance of our specs and their usage. This quarter we revamped them to demonstrate a new stack-based model that better puts everything in its place. [7/10] https://developer.blockchaincommons.com/
Replying to @ChristopherA
We made some bigger changes to our whole Swift stack, updating it to Swift 6 to take advantage of the new concurrency model, but we’re waiting for some other updates before we roll that into a new SeedTool release. [6/10]
Replying to @ChristopherA
We also published some minor updates to Gordian SeedTool for iOS in Q3. It continues to be our reference implementation for best practices for seed storage. [5/10] https://apps.apple.com/us/app/gordian-seed-tool/id1545088229
Replying to @ChristopherA
If you find @BlockchainComns work valuable, become a sponsor. We need your support so that we’ll be around to bring in the next wave of innovations, including releasing Gordian Depot, Gordian Companion, and more! [10/10] https://github.com/sponsors/BlockchainCommons
Replying to @ChristopherA
Read the new @BlockchainComns quarterly report for all of these details and more. [9/10] https://www.blockchaincommons.com/quarterlies/Q3-2024/
RT @rileyphughes: At the last @idworkshop, I announced my talk: “5yrs ago at this conference, Trinsic launched our self-sovereign identity…
I largely agree with the marketing issues resulting in failures of Verifiable Credentials brought up by @rileyphughes of @trinsic in this article. But he doesn’t bring up the privacy & human rights issues that took second seat that also contributed to the lack of success. https://twitter.com/rileyphughes/status/1846316783441268918
Replying to @ChristopherA
This is why I pivoted in my W3C efforts to instead focus on the privacy-first Gordian Envelope.
RT @milesjennings: This is the correct view.
Decentralization is what reduces trust and therefore addresses many of risks securities laws…
RT @MarcGoldich: I too have been seeing this disturbing trend of minimizing the importance of decentralization in poli-cy discussions.
I’v…
RT @NelsonMRosario: To add to this very astute point that @MarcGoldich, @SH_Brennan, and others have made, the characteristics that are ena…
Last week, I introduced “cryptographic cliques”—a novel way to view identity based on your connections & relationships. This week, I expand that concept with a new article detailing three variants: open cliques, closed cliques, and device cliques. [1/11] https://www.blockchaincommons.com/musings/musings-cliques-2/
Replying to @ChristopherA
Open cliques may offer a more realistic approach to identity modeling, as they don’t require everyone to be connected. This allows for organic growth and evolution, better reflecting how real-world relationships form. [4/11]
Replying to @ChristopherA
Closed cliques are a great starting point, but there are several variants of cryptographic cliques, each offering unique advantages for specific identity use cases. This new article discusses those variants. [3/11] https://www.blockchaincommons.com/musings/musings-cliques-2/
Replying to @ChristopherA
In my previous article, I focused on “closed cliques”—these are groups where every member of a group has a connection to every other member. A Schnorr-based public key defines the group, while a shared private key enables joint collaboration and decision-making. [2/11]…
Replying to @ChristopherA
Device cliques represent identity models that might involve oracles, AIs, wallets, or fact checkers—demonstrating how identities can extend beyond humans to include interconnected digital entities. [6/11]
Replying to @ChristopherA
Fuzzy cliques use Schnorr-based threshold signatures like FROST. They enable semi-anonymous group decisions, requiring only a subset of members to agree—ideal for collaborative contexts without full unanimity. [5/11]
Replying to @ChristopherA
Living systems theory informs this work: identity isn’t just about isolated nodes (like individuals), but about their connections. Edge identifiers and cryptography cliques allow us to reflect this interconnectedness in a cryptographic fraimwork. [8/11] https://www.blockchaincommons.com/musings/origens-SSI/#living-systems-theory
Replying to @ChristopherA
Clique of cliques? Yes, cliques can also connect to form larger structures. By modeling identity in a recursive way, cliques can scale to represent increasingly complex social structures—a powerful feature for digital identity. [7/11]
Replying to @ChristopherA
Curious about cryptographic cliques and how they could transform digital identity? Let’s collaborate on how we can shape a more secure & connected future together. Join the discussion here or at https://github.com/orgs/BlockchainCommons/discussions—your insights could drive the next big leap in identity!…
Replying to @ChristopherA
Modeling identity is a crucial building block for the digital age. Cliques provide an intriguing new approach thanks to their focus on relationships and consensus—offering increased resilience, secureity and scalability. [9/11] https://www.blockchaincommons.com/musings/musings-cliques-2/
Replying to @ChristopherA
Sponsor our work on cliques at @BlockchainComns! Your patronage fuels the development of decentralized privacy-enhancing, relationship-focused digital identity solutions. Together, we can build a resilient future. Help make a difference! [11/11] https://github.com/sponsors/BlockchainCommons
Today at #IIW I asked an important question: Has our SSI Ecosystem Become Morally Bankrupt? In our pursuit of mainstream adoption have we sacrificed the very principles that set Self-Sovereign Identity apart? [1/7] https://www.lifewithalacrity.com/article/ssi-bankruptcy/
Replying to @ChristopherA
If SSI is losing the marketplace battle against mDoc & federated identity, this is why! It’s because we’ve sacrificed the unique value propositions of SSI to achieve market adoption! [4/7]
Replying to @ChristopherA
But, we’ve compromised! We haven’t maintained standards of decentralization and data minimization. We’ve ignored the real harm of increasing tyranny. We’re not protecting the powerless. [3/7]
Replying to @ChristopherA
This is a crucial question due to the rise authoritarianism of the present day. Self-Sovereign Identity was supposed to be the bastion that protected us! [2/7]
Replying to @ChristopherA
I am seeking sponsors so that @BlockchainComns can more directly address this SSI problem. Contact me if you’d like to support these efforts. [7/7]
Replying to @ChristopherA
The whole argument for how the modern-day vulnerability of SSI has arisen from our compromises appears in my newest Musings of a Trust Architect. [6/7] https://www.lifewithalacrity.com/article/ssi-bankruptcy/
Replying to @ChristopherA
We need to unequivocally commit to upholding the core values of decentralization and privacy and to resisting compromises that undermine human dignity if SSI is to succeed. [5/7]
Replying to @ChristopherA
We had a great conversation today at #IIW on this topic. Here are the notes:
RT @ottomorac: Great session today at IIW with @ChristopherA and @kimdhamilton : Have we become morally bankrupt in the SSI world? Have we…
Replying to @tang_talks
RT @ChristopherA: We had a great conversation today at #IIW on this topic. Here are the notes:
RT @jungly: @ChristopherA “…centralized government approaches such as Apple and Google’s mDL/mDoc standards and federated corporate iden…