4 Ways Decentralized Identity Will Influence Our Privacy and The Internet

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Identity is what makes every human different from others, which is the fundamental right that gives people the right or power to participate in something important. Just like here in Steemit, we all have our own identity, which allows us to login into the Steemit platform and perform some functions.

With the high rate at which people's information is stolen on a centralized platform, there is a need to have a better means of identification when using the internet, and blockchain technology is on the rise to build a decentralized identity. With the type of blockchain technology projects that are coming out, there is no doubt that the internet and our privacy can be impact by such projects.

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• OWNERSHIP OF PERSONAL DATA

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All centralized platforms have ownership of our data, which can be sold to third parties without your approval. With the help of decentralized identity, people will become the actual owners of their data since digital applications and personal devices will help store and encrypt data using a private key. With this, user information will not be stored on centralized servers that are open to exposure without the permission of users.

With the help of blockchain projects like Blockstack, users can have control over their data and get free from data exposure. Everyone wants personal control of his or her data, and a decentralized digital identity system is the best way to go.

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• ZERO-KNOWLEDGE PROOFS

In a centralized system, if a person needs to prove something about himself or herself, he or she must provide vital information. For example, if you are to get a loan from a bank, you will be asked to reveal some sensitive information before your application can be accepted. Also, as a citizen, if you must take part in an election, you will have to provide your identity, which must be known.

With the help of zero-knowledge-proof blockchain technology, such means of identification will change. This is because, with zero knowledge of proof technology, a person can verify the validity of his or her information without disclosing his or her data. A good blockchain project for solving real-world applications of zero-knowledge proofs is Zcash, which verifies users' information without revealing it.

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• UNIVERSAL IDENTITY

In the internet world, our identity is managed through email addresses, usernames, and passwords, which we have to remember before we can log in. Our accounts can get hacked because we use weak passwords. With the help of blockchain technology, we can easily log in to websites with just a click.

In a blockchain, our identity is linked to a private key and a public key. The private key is the key through which a user is recognized for monetary transactions, whereas the public key is the key through which a user is recognized to log in, which is difficult for anyone to hack.

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• ON-CHAIN REPUTATION

In Web2, which is a centralized system, anyone can easily create a website and begin posting fake news to receive traffic, which is not good. A decentralized project like Drep, Ontology, and Fantom that is created to enable reliable information to be circulated online will help eliminate fake news.

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Conclusion

With the help of blockchain technology, everyone would have better control over his or her data, which decentralized identity is already offering on most platforms. In this post, we have learned about the four ways decentralized identity will influence our privacy and the internet.

This post was completely written by me after carrying out my research on the website shared below.
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