Will we have to prove our humanity?

Our digital selves are, in a certain sense, becoming an ethereal and intangible extension of our physical selves.

The progressive adoption of technology related to the various iterations of the Web has enabled us to connect in ways that were not even conceivable 50 years ago.

The information we share, the interactions we have and the activities we do can shape our digital identities in positive and negative ways: it is up to us to decide how we want to present ourselves, and this can have consequences in real life as well.

An Identity History X

Identity, understood as the concept of ourselves has evolved over time, based on intervening cultural, social and economic changes.

Liberty in a cup of tea

In some respects, we could nearly say that any concept ending with “ism” is questionable: do you agree?

The past century has seen the development of concepts such as civil rights, which challenged the classical conception of identity and sought to expand possibilities and opportunities for marginalized groups, but when did we really have in writing human respect?

The Magna Carta was signed in 1215 in England and it is considered one of the earliest examples of a written constitution and a cornerstone of the modern concept of human rights. For the first time, a simple piece of paper established the principle of the rule of law and the protection of individual rights, including the right to a fair trial and protection from arbitrary detention.

Still in England, in 1679, Habeas Corpus has enacted: a legal principle that requires authorities to bring a person in custody before a court and justify their detention. This writ was meant to protect individuals from unlawful detention and to ensure that they are not held in custody without due process of law.

In modern times, terms such as gender and sexual orientation have appeared, and also the term race, now considered despicable, has been replaced by a whole series of synonyms, which synonyms are not, such as ethnicity, heritage, ancestry, descent and culture: all of that, however, draws a clear line of demarcation from the past.

Modern times

…and here we come to digital identity: the digital representation of an individual or entity, which allows us to interact with online systems and services.

With the increasing reliance on digital technology in various aspects of our daily life, there has been a corresponding rise in the use of web3 platforms, which are decentralized networks that use blockchain technology to facilitate secure and transparent transactions. One of the key benefits of web3 platforms is their ability to enable the creation and use of digital identities, which can be used to represent individuals, organizations, or devices online. These digital identities can be used for a variety of purposes, including verifying the authenticity of online transactions, establishing trust between parties, and enabling access to certain services or resources.

In the context of blockchain, identity is unique and inside the chain. It is typically created using a combination of public and private keys: the private one must be kept secret and is used for authentication, while the public one is needed to identify the “physical keeper” of the identity and can be shared publicly.

In the digital age, many applications require secure and verifiable authentication: examples include voting systems, supply chain management, and financial transactions.

Another important application involves intellectual property management.

One of the key advantages of digital identities on the blockchain is their decentralization: the lack of control by a single entity makes it difficult for them to be remotely altered or forged, contributing to keeping safe and intact the identity-related information contained on the chain, such as name, age, place of birth, and social security number (assuming it is still of any use in the future!)

However, it has to be said that the use of digital identities to enable access to certain services or resources raises questions about fairness and equality, as not all individuals or groups may have equal access to or understanding of these technologies.

It is important to consider the ethical considerations and accountability issues that arise in the creation and management of digital identities: these technologies should always be handled responsibly and fairly.

No more paperwork

In contrast to traditional models of identity management, which are often pertaining to centralized entities such as government agencies or large corporations, Self-Sovereign Identity draws on the concept that individuals should be in control of their digital identities and the data associated with them.

An SSI system could be used to verify a user’s identity when entering a secured building or attending a restricted event, allowing him to use his digital identity to gain access instead of relying on traditional forms of identification such as a driver’s license or passport.

Self-sovereign identity systems allow individuals to manage personal information such as COVID-19 vaccination status or test results and the information needed for Know Your Customer verification. These systems could easily and securely prove a COVID-19 status and share personal information for KYC purposes, while also protecting privacy and data, streamlining the process and reducing the need for manual data entry and paperwork.

The goal of SSI is basically to give the ability to assert and verify digital identities without the need for intermediaries: this may challenge the traditional concept of proof of identity and humanity, which has always been based on physical documents, established by governments or institutions.

The ENS-SBT partnership against Sneaky Store Snatchers

The Ethereum Name Service is useful to identify Ethereum addresses, which could be considered a unique identifier associated with a particular wallet or smart contract. An ENS name plus make an Ethereum address more user-friendly and storable, as a kind of alias.

The ENS can also be used to associate other types of information with the address, such as a social profile or website, to create a more complete “human” and verifiable identity on the Ethereum blockchain.

ENS, albeit exclusively linked to Ethereum, is a very promising service, which could also replace the traditional IPv4 / Ipv6 management in the long term, as it would allow the merge of multiple MAC and IP addresses into a single identifier.

In some countries, you might happen to come back from a vacation and no longer find our store, or rather, find it seized by a neighbor, perhaps thanks to a hole. The friendly fellow is counting precisely on the fact that the procedure for the recognition of your rightful ownership will be slow and cumbersome, guaranteeing that he will be able to benefit for a long time not only from the store but also from the goods in it.

Such things will no longer happen in the future, thanks to the ENS-SBT pairing.

What is it all about?

Soulbound token means an NFT tied to a specific individual or entity and cannot be transferred or sold to anyone else, unless programmed to do so, but only with the occurrence of particular circumstances. SBTs are often used to represent a person’s identity on social media, or ownership of an asset. We have already spoken in the past about this, as it relates to a very significant topic for our dear Vitalik since the time he was scammed by Blizzard, but that is another story.

Getting back to the store example, we could register it with an ENS like eloisa.store.eth, tie it to the SBT and avoid pulling in lawyers and lawsuits.

…or rather, we certainly could, but only after having immediately regained possession of the property.

What DID you do?

A Decentralized Identifier is designated to be self-sovereign and decentralized. This means that the identifier is directly controlled by the individual (or entity) it identifies.

DIDs are typically used to represent a wide range of identities, including personal, corporate, and organization-related identities.

One of the most valued features of DIDs is that they are designed to be used across different decentralized systems and networks, so that multiple platforms can be managed with the same identifier, rather than having to manage multiple identities for different purposes.

DIDs are often used in conjunction with other technologies, such as crypto wallets and identification protocols, to provide a comprehensive way to manage digital identities.

A digitally united Europe

What does VC stand for?

No, I am not talking about Venture Capital, this is a (long) article about identity, and in fact, VC stands for “Verifiable Credentials”.

Who, among you, has ever been in the position of not knowing whether or not to trust the curriculum vitae left on your desk? VCs are digital versions of physical documents that can be used for secure, online sharing of pieces of information about organizations or individuals that can be cryptographically verified and represent licenses, certificates, qualifications, and even employment history.

VCs are issued by entities that certify the veracity of the data they contain and are stored on a blockchain, allowing them to be fully verifiable and secure and are composed of metadata, a declaration, and proof, and are encrypted using cryptographic signatures.

The European Commission is working on the development of the European Blockchain Services Infrastructure (EBSI). We are speaking about a set of standards and specifications that will allow for the verification of official documents across the European Union and beyond, and will make it easier for citizens to access public services in their country of residence by presenting their VCs.

Proof of Humanity

Proof of humanity is about establishing the identity of an individual to confirm that he or she represents a real person. There are various ways to verify this, such as analyzing biometric data or asking a machine to solve difficult tasks, such as solving a captcha.

PoH is important to protect the privacy and security of individuals by ensuring that particular actions cannot be performed by automated systems or bots.

Proof of Humanity is also used to prevent fraud or abuse, such as the massive creation of fake social accounts, or multiple sign-ups for free services to benefit from limitless facilities, which unlimited should not be.

-ISM

In a totalitarian regime, identity is used as a tool for the control of the masses, such as promoting one specific ethnicity at the expense of others or imposing an ideological identity on citizens, seeking to suppress any form of diversity or dissent, limiting individual freedom of choice and expression.

Digital totalitarianism exacerbates these mechanics as it allows for greater monitoring and control through the use of data tracking, AI-assisted cameras, and biometric sensors.

Unfortunately, dictatorships have already implemented systems using these technologies, such as video surveillance, facial and license plate recognition, mobile device location data and official records to identify and target individuals for imprisonment.

The Myanmar regime has repeatedly shut down the internet and blocked access to social media in order to stifle resistance and maintain control.

The U.S. has also used AI for “predictive policing” initiatives, which use Big Data to create lists of probable criminal offenders: the Transportation Security Administration is using as of 2012 a comprehensive technology initiative called Quiet Skies to flag and monitor travelers based on “suspect” behavioral patterns. While these technologies can be useful for allocating resources and manpower, they can also be concerning in the hands of malicious actors and raise questions about who can be trusted with such power and what mechanisms are in place to mitigate damages if they go rogue.

SickVision

The Chinese government, as featured in the first episode of the third season of Black Mirror, has implemented a “social credit system” that tracks citizens’ behavior, including social media posts. It is possible to assign a “sincerity score” that can affect access to certain privileges or opportunities. The internet is increasingly controlled by tech and telecom companies that can censor or limit access to certain information, and AI is being used by authoritarian regimes to monitor and control populations. These developments have the potential to lead to a future of digital totalitarianism that is difficult to escape from.

The camera and surveillance manufacturer Hikvision has provided a software platform to Chinese police that includes alarms for various protest activities, including “gathering crowds to disrupt order in public places” and “unlawful assembly, procession, demonstration”. These alarms are listed alongside offenses such as “gambling” or disruptive events like fire hazards in technical documents available on Hikvision’s website. The company’s website also included “alarms for religion” and the banned spiritual movement Falun Gong until it was contacted by surveillance research firm IPVM. Hikvision’s cloud platform, called Infovision IoT, is used by police to maintain, manage, analyze, and respond to information collected through cameras set up across China. The US government has placed Hikvision on a blacklist and introduced rules prohibiting imports and sales of the company’s communications equipment in the US due to its involvement in human rights violations in China.

Can we afford to lose ourselves?

One way to think about the inviolability of our digital identities in the context of Web3 is to consider the historical background of the sacredness of our physical bodies.

These principles whose roots can be found in humanism: the idea that each individual has certain fundamental rights and freedoms that cannot be infringed upon by the state or any other authority. In the same way, the concept of self-sovereign identity in web3 is based on the idea that individuals have the right to control and manage their own digital identities, rather than having them controlled by external entities such as governments or corporations.

Just as the Magna Carta and Habeas Corpus establish and protect the inviolability of our physical bodies, SSI principles seek to establish and protect the inviolability of our digital identities: the right to control who has access to our personal information and how it is used, as well as the right to revoke access or make changes to our digital identities as we see fit.

Totalitarian countries like China are showing us a possible future for all of humankind, and it is up to all of us to prevent this from happening: it doesn’t matter what we believe in, our “race,” the job we do, our bank account…no one should ever tell us how we should be.

So, ultimately

Will we have to prove our humanity?

Only if we won’t be.