Aug 15Once more with meaning — a review of a draft industry paper on human-centric digital identityThe paper falls far short in its appreciation for human-centred design, and this is quite typical of contemporary approaches to digital identity. Originally posted to the generative identity website. The OpenID Foundation has invited comments on a draft paper titled Human-Centric Digital Identity: a Primer for Government Officials (July 7…Digital Identity11 min readDigital Identity11 min read
Jan 30Live or DIE — a review of a draft industry paper on the harms of SSIDear lawmakers and regulators, this draft industry paper doesn’t do the job. I explain why in the hope that you will act. First published to the generative identity website. In my first public critique of self-sovereign identity (Generative identity — beyond self-sovereignty, 2019) I began to explore ways in which…Digital Identity17 min readDigital Identity17 min read
Nov 6, 2022Web3’s future #fail is avoidableThe point of failure is precisely where Web3 technology meets you and me. We must change our approach, not just to avoid failure, but to fully explore and expand the gifts of being human. First published to the generative identity website. There are varied definitions of Web3. If I’m going…Web311 min readWeb311 min read
Published inStories from the Decentralized Web·Oct 17, 2022The number one challenge in computer scienceIn The Laws of Identity (2005), Kim Cameron lamented for “the Internet’s missing identity layer”, by which he was referring to the identities of Internet users. This pithy notion has carried forward into the self-sovereign identity (SSI) community. …Identity3 min readIdentity3 min read
Sep 6, 2022Trust Network: let’s bring our human trust connections into the digital age991Paul SabinI'd love to jump on a call to discuss this space Paul. Perhaps via the Neighbourhoods project?I'd love to jump on a call to discuss this space Paul. Perhaps via the Neighbourhoods project? I cannot share your enthusiasm if only because I think this is even harder than it appears, and it appears hard enough! Programmatic quantification of reputation (including trustworthiness) is an inevitable evil due…1 min read1 min read
Jul 14, 2022Digital identity is not human identity, and that mattersIf your work involves architecting or designing or developing or policymaking for the interweave of people and digital technologies, or researching the consequences, may I invite you to check out my new essay: Human identity — the number one challenge in computer science. Wonderfully, I’ve been helped by thirteen reviewers…Digital Identity3 min readDigital Identity3 min read
Apr 13, 2022It doesn’t matter if you don’t understand blockchain and Decentralized Digital Identity: it just…1586Enrique DansYou omit to provide your conceptual definition of identity.You omit to provide your conceptual definition of identity. It is critical to do so to begin to understand the boundaries within which your hopes for SSI might play out if we're very careful, and by corrolary those aspects of the human condition and community without for which it might be / will be deeply harmful.1 min read1 min read
Mar 28, 2022We need to talk about the social graphFirst published to the AKASHA blog. Who doesn’t love a good concept?! Concepts are the fundamental building blocks of thinking, of designing. While there are plenty of things in the mix when it comes to contemplating system design, if the primary concepts remain unchallenged and unchanged from what came before…Deso11 min readDeso11 min read
Oct 13, 2021Imagine being able to port your Uber or Lyft rating and comments into your new Couchsurfing account — The cultural premises of these groups are different, but if a trusted Couchsurfing node says “hey, that info can still help us get to know a person faster”, then you don’t have to start from scratch building a reputation on Couchsurfing.Introducing Neighbourhoods2931Emaline FriedmanUber and Couchsurfing are different contexts.Uber and Couchsurfing are different contexts. Reputation "porting" between contexts inevitably leads, I think, to non-contextual reputation. And non-contextual reputation is an unmitigated evil. What am I missing?1 min read1 min read
Jul 10, 2021The past, present, and possible future of software architectureFirst published to my blog. It is important to understand the ways in which software may be conjured into the world for the simple reason that software and information technologies more generally have immense social and economic impact. The genesis of such process has been called software architecture, and there…Cooperation9 min readCooperation9 min read
