Anonymous Identity Verification in Decentralized Networks
Decentralization means transferring decision-making and control to a distributed network instead of a centralized entity. The concept of decentralization is not brand new. It has stayed with us for quite a time, let’s say since the creation of the Internet. In the beginning the Internet was indeed decentralized. With time, more and more solutions appeared that tended to centralize the access to databases and generally get more control over the Internet. At the same time, due to the centralization of control, such systems became very vulnerable. Relying on centralized management their Achilles heel has become Single Point of Failure (SPOF), a node that is connecting users with the application server. In case of its failure, the entire system stops working.
To prevent this from happening and also to protect users from their personal data being abused by any entities, which frequently happens in centralized ecosystems, Web 3.0 was created with decentralization and control over personal data as its core tenet. Unlike Web 2.0 decentralized solutions in Web 3.0 are not stored in one place or on a single server. Even if the databases of such companies as Google are countless and stored all over the world, they are still centralized by Google protocols, and in case of a malicious attack or power cut their operation could be terminated. The example of a truly decentralized system is the Bitcoin blockchain protocol. Moreover, recently the blockchain ecosystem is flourishing with more or less decentralized networks coming into existence, e.g. Ethereum, Tezos, R3 Corda, Stellar, etc.
Benefits of Decentralized Ecosystems
✔️ Zero-trust Environment
In a decentralized blockchain system, everyone has a copy of exactly the same data, so there is no need to trust anyone or know anyone. If any users want to corrupt or alter anyone’s distributed ledger, the majority of users would simply reject it.
✔️ Improved Data Reconciliation
In Web 2.0. the data to exchange between entities is transformed and stored. The more you exchange it, the more transformations it undergoes. It means higher chances for data loss or its corruption. Decentralized data storage is accessible to every entity in the network in real-time.
✔️ Improved Resource Distribution
Decentralized networks are capable of assuring the provision of better services and resources because they don’t have traditional weak points, e.g. the aforementioned SPOF, etc. It means that promised services would be rendered on time, and normally provided with better consistency and performance.
One of the decentralized solutions capable of bringing value and making blockchain users benefit from its application is Unika — Web 3.0 anonymous identity protocol.
Unika Decentralized Architecture
Unika protocol is a decentralized system based on how it verifies users’ identities and processes, in addition to how it interacts with the biometric data received, and even the way the data is stored. The most important part of Unika functional core is the way validators confirm users’ identities. Unika architecture will be made up of several parts:
1️⃣. Decentralized uDapp
The uDapp is a decentralized Unika application consisting of several smart contracts executed in a decentralized network (backend) and a web application that is used to communicate with the network to execute the biometric identification procedure (frontend).
2️⃣. Decentralized Validating Nodes
The decentralization of the system is achieved through the network of validating nodes interacting with each other and users via blockchain. By using a special consensus mechanism, the identification process is conducted on multiple nodes simultaneously. It increases the level of protection against any malicious behavior. A decentralized network of validators (uNodes) is a network with special Unika validating software running on each node. uNodes are in charge of conducting and rechecking the identification procedure, as well as executing special user requests to services.
3️⃣. Decentralized storage
Decentralized data storage is used to store links between users’ biometric data, their addresses, and other data necessary for the entire system to operate.
In the process of biometric identification, users’ biometric data received is checked for authenticity and uniqueness (based on previously obtained data). As a result, the received biometric data is associated with the blockchain address (the one that was used to initiate the identification procedure). This procedure allows users to attach to their identities (biometric data) as many blockchain addresses as they wish, so in the future, they could receive different services effortlessly and no further identity verification is needed.
To get to know more about Unika decentralized anonymous identity protocol, please, send us an email. Also, keep an eye on Unika project growth and hitting new milestones through the social networks.
