Bitcoin Masterclass’s latest session in London reviews discussion topics for the audience

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In the last session of the first “The Bitcoin Masterclasses”, Dr. Wright invited groups to talk about their discussion topics related to what they have learned and outlined some of the applications made possible by blockchain technology.

Group discussions: Ideas, challenges and solutions

Group 1

The first group talked about potential self-verification, handling conflicting data (errors) in a Merkle tree using schemas, linking things like debit cards and photographs, and handling changing attributes like religion, new languages ​​learned, job history, etc. .

“How do you think about separating your state-certified and your personal identity?” asks Dr. Wright. The group responds that having more of them and using selective disclosure can help with this.

Dr. Wright points out that governments never solve these problems. It is up to developers and entrepreneurs to solve this, and then governments will step in and set legal standards.

Group 2

The second group notes that some attributes may be self-certified, while others will need entities such as certificate authorities to sign them and associated changes. An example of the first would be an email address, while an example of the second would be a passport or driver’s license.

Once again, it is possible to share some information while keeping other information private by using selective disclosure. This will reduce the amount of information organizations have, and will therefore reduce the impact of data breaches. It also allows the likes of marketing companies to send information to potential customers without knowing who they are or anything else about them.

On a slightly different topic, Dr. Wright discusses how, as long as we randomize addresses, IPv6 is more secure than IPv4. That would make things like port scanning impossible due to the large number of IP addresses generated. As with many of Dr. Wright’s thoughts on security, this works mainly by making it economically impossible to carry out such attacks.

Group 3

Group three focused on data types and attributes that can change over time. For example, nationality at birth is something that may appear on your original birth certificate but can be changed. Updated attributes must always have anchors back to the originals.

There will also be a need for more entries in a given Merkle tree, covering things like bank accounts. They believe that the left side of a tree can track actual entries while the right can record the number of entries.

This group also thought about more modern data types, such as payment handles on BSV or social media.

This group also believed that data could be attested from multiple sources, making some data more reliable than others. For example, an address can be certified by several authorities, which makes it more reliable than other data types associated with an identity.

Group 4

Group four discusses the potential for Merkle trees to be linked together, allowing others to attest to certain attributes of our identity. For example, a family member can testify to our relationship with them, creating a web of trust. This can help clubs, leagues and trusts identify who is trustworthy.

We may also associate various attributes with our identity, such as attending Bitcoin Masterclasses, taking certificates, etc. Other participants and members of the community may sign that you actually participated. Subtrees can be used to track events, keeping them separate from the main tree.

For the true potential of all this to be realized, a standard must be created, and that standard must be put into practice. This would allow entities such as the Home Office to use keys to verify the authenticity of documents relating to one’s identity. Dr. Wright acknowledges that it will take a long time for all of this to roll out, but in 10-20 years many of the security vulnerabilities we face today will be resolved.

Group 5

The fifth group starts by saying that self-attestation can come first, and attestation from the authorities can follow. Several notaries could verify each entry. They also thought of donor cards, which say there are many use cases related to a person’s intentions and eventualities; a will would be an example of that.

“Does a notary public need to be a government function?” asks Dr. Wright. He says that in the UK they don’t have to be. There are both public and private notaries who can sign things of this nature.

Application and implementation

Before the break, Dr. Wright looks at some potential uses for all this. For example, we can comply with KYC checks for things like exchanges without giving them custody of copies of passports and personal documents. This is why they “basically call me the antichrist of Silicon Valley,” smiles Dr. Wright. Data is the new oil, and if we control our own data, companies like Twitter, Meta/Facebook (NASDAQ: META ), Google (NASDAQ: GOOGL ), and Palantir won’t have an easy way to make money.

Dr. Wright points out that if any of this is to become a reality, we need to implement it. He explained that the technology already exists and in some cases is decades old. The blockchain is the latest (2008).

Dr. Wright concludes the Masterclasses by discussing the implications of a more private world with blockchain-based identity. From ignoring and drowning out trolls on social media, to better record keeping to a reduction in fraud and financial theft, a better, more honest and transparent world is possible.

See: Bitcoin Masterclasses with Craig Wright – Confidentiality, Privacy, Anonymity, Party to Party

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