Moving the Real World to web3 With zk-Oracle
“More information, more power.”
An ordinary user who shares to his narrow audience on social media, sometimes shops online, listens to music, does research on small subjects, is followed by algorithms that can even learn what he hides from his inner circle while using the internet with this simple routine that will not make a difference to himself or humanity, and his virtual identity is created with the results of analysis on his political ideas, tastes, interests and much more. In a nutshell, he gives everything when he’s doing nothing. Giant tech companies and governments like Google and Meta are the ones holding this magnifying glass that can see everything.
Existing websites and applications collect all your data in data centers, process it, and provide it to different sources. The internet, where we spend more and more time every day, has become an area where most of us spend more time than in real life. The privacy we draw in real is not easily exceeded. However, many of the applications we use in internet life are asking us for permissions to break all these privacy limits while still installing the application and are authorized by billions of people without hesitation.
In these days when the Internet is becoming our new reality, the need for privacy inevitably arises on the internet as in our real life.
As a result of this need, inquiries and studies on decentralization have intensified in the web universe. The main element of decentralization, which will prevent all kinds of information from being accessible to certain centers, has been the most obvious element that distinguishes web3 from web2.
Of course, we can attribute the fact that decentralization on the web has become a necessity to many sociological factors, politics or libertarian movements, but among all this, privacy seems to be the first feature that users should acquire. In addition, the fact that Satoshi, the inventor of Bitcoin, the first decentralized currency to open the doors of web3 to the world, is not yet known is a reminder of the importance of privacy for all blockchain users and developers. And decentralized infrastructures are essential to ensuring privacy.
Our new identities, our public keys in the digital universe. Unlimited public key = unlimited ID 100% disconnected from real. What if I want to move parts of my existing life into my new life, which I will create on web3 without undermining my anonymity?
Web3 Universe
Although Web3 consists of many different components and many different definitions have been made in this regard, we can say that the most obvious difference that distinguishes it from web2 is decentralization, so as not to get bogged down in too many technical details. After the first period web, where the end user can see and read the content created by certain sources, web2, where all users can produce content and interact among themselves through centralized infrastructures, i.e. the web form that we are currently using, has entered our lives.
Web3 will not be a completely different world except for the web2 we are in. So there’s not going to be a world where we log in through a specific app and we’re from there anymore. As a result of web3ing day by day when using Web2, we will be able to say that we are now web3 users. During this transition, it is important that the identity, products and basic capabilities we have in the web2 world can also be transferred to web3, facilitating change, acceptability and rapid migration.
Although web3 has its own art, culture, social understanding, own professions, its own currencies, money understanding… In short, although there is a universe that will create its own tools and norms in all titles, as beings living in the real world, we will always have to use real-to-decentralized web migration tools.
For example, today we have to spend our money through a central financial institution unless we resort to unusual ways to access a decentralized crypto currency that is part of web3. Reaching out to a centralized resource while accessing it means matching and disclosing your identity in both worlds. Mina Protocol can be a bridge without information disclosure between the zeroknowledge-proof (ZKP) infrastructure it offers and the centralized financial system and the decentralized universe. Or, for example, although no direct centralized resources are used to take ownership of an NFT artwork called decentralized, we still use central servers to display it. At this point, Filecoin will be able to offer decentralized storage for web3… With the proliferation of protocols such as Mina, Filecoin, etc., we will move to web3 day by day.
Relationship between Mina Protocol and Web3
The tools to move data to a decentralized universe where money, professions, identities are digitized should not disclose some of the data you carry from web2/real. In classic block chains, data must be transparent and verified by all sources that verify the network in order to be included in the network. In Mina, unlike other block chains, the network does not need historical data because Mina works with zeroknowledge-proof technology, and the system works in such a way that it reads mathematical evidence of the accuracy of the data, not the data itself. The mina network is also possible because the Mina network does not need to keep all past blocks and in-block data; the system is programmed to read snark evidence that represents the accuracy of the data, not that data.
In order to explain the working logic of ZKP, let me give a concrete example; Teller, which will work in the future using Mina’s ZKP infrastructure, is a DeFi application where you can take out crypto credits with your real credit score. (Currently on Ethereum Rinkeby and Polygon Mumbai networks, you can experience in textnet) In Teller’s version of the testnet, which operates independently of the Mina infrastructure, you manually upload the PDF of your credit score to the system and expect the lender to download and check this PDF on their computer, but the version that will work with Mina will, unlike this, pull the person’s credit score directly from a website that can be credit score checked. During the withdrawal of this data to the network, the data content is not processed on the Mina blockchain because snark evidence that represents the accuracy of the data is sent to the Mina network, not the data itself. And the app shows the lender the correct credit score represented by this snark evidence.
In the first working model, all the information in the file and file containing your wallet address and credit rating can be seen by the lender, as well as the central source from which that file was uploaded can access your data. However, all you need is for the system to show your credit score to the lender. The fact that all information about you during this process is seen by the lender or the source from which the files were uploaded undermines privacy.
Or let me give you another simple example and then explain in more detail the working principle of Teller’s version to work with Mina; the identity confirmation system of crypto currency exchanges is still very primitive. As someone who entered crypto in 2016, we have come a long way since then, from selfies with stock market names and history to biometric facial recognition, but they are still working with a system that does not take into account the privacy of the individual and is no different from 10 years ago. All the information you send for identity confirmation goes into the hands of the exchanges and the brokerage company if the exchange is using the agent for KYC. It may be that this data is deleted after approval, etc., I have never even researched that side because if we say maximum privacy, maximum privacy, maximum decentralization, we need to act on the basis of not trusting a third source.
So what does it take to confirm your identity without relying on a third source? For example, can exchanges pull your credentials from a source on the Internet, such as from the credit score display site in Teller, through online government systems (our e-government), where you can perform many official transactions, large and small?
Why not?
Touch Zeroknowledge (ZK) Technology!
And how is that possible? What are the requirements for an application that will pull your identity data from the e-government?
The first is decentralization because from the moment the identity data is sent to a centralized source on the other side; you have to trust that resource. What we’re looking for is a system that’s completely trustless, that doesn’t require trust, that can’t be abused. Therefore, the source from which your credentials are kept must first be decentralized. But is it possible to pull data from the real world into decentralized blockchains? It’s possible with Oracle. For example, with Oracle technology owned by blockchain project Chainlink, it is possible to attract some data from the web to the blockchain. Then it’s done. You’re not going to be Not. Because the data taken with Chainlink is sent to the blockchain when it is intended to be used, and the data that enters the blockchain can be seen by everyone.
So;
The second is privacy because it is absolutely not something we want that every data we pull from the real world to web3 is visible and accessible to everyone on a decentralized blockchain. As I mentioned in the example above, existing Oracle solutions are not suitable for the withdrawal of personal data to the blockchain because they only allow the withdrawal of data of certain formats and classes, such as token prices, weather data, etc., and they do so transparently. Mina’s different. Both the types of data to be pulled are very large and the data being pulled is snarked by the Mina infrastructure, which means that mathematical proof of the accuracy of that data is created, and Mina ensures that the data is sent to the network without processing the data into the network. Thus, the data itself is not transparently processed into the blockchain. It is also possible to create this snark evidence with the computers you use in everyday life.
In summary, mina infrastructure allows us to move out-of-chain data to the blockchain with Oracle, allowing us to do this without disclosing the data, and also allows us to create our own snark. Because with the 22kb Mina fullnodeu, you can connect to the network without intermediaries, create snark evidence of the data you want on your own device and move it to the blockchain>web3 universe!
You can also take a look at this article about Proof of Alpha developed by Mina ecosystem partner O1Labs;
More Examples
NFT World — Preventing Multi-Purchase of Limited Products or Ensuring the Purchase of Only Persons with Certain Characteristics
Multi Purchase Topic
I think most of the people who read the article participated in at least one pre-sale. If anyone wants to participate in the pre-sale through Coinlist, where mina pre-sold, or DaoMaker on Ethereum, they will remember that they have authenticated on both sources. Coinlist is already a centralized exchange, and I assume Coinlist members don’t see a bad reason for using centralized resources, but DaoMaker? Although it is a so-called decentralized application, you connect your wallet, match your credentials and wallet address from the moment you make kyc, and you deliver your credentials to a central source.
Authentication(zk-auth) is also a requirement in decentralized applications to prevent the stocking of limited edition and sold tokens and NFT-like products with multi-inputs made by certain sources.
Exclusive Sales only to People with Certain Characteristics
If an NFT creator wants to sell only to people who live in certain regions or to people who are members of a particular foundation, organization, how can they determine if the other party is in that class? It can also collect and detect people’s information through centralized auditing tools, which would take us directly off the web3. But instead, mina’s zk-Oracle infrastructure can also confirm identity, address, foundation membership, graduation, etc.
NFT’s or Airdrops for Donors to the X Foundation
Let’s just say that you wanted to develop a social responsibility project individually and gesture to those who support or belong to a foundation, social formation or member you have designated. Let’s go over a more specific example, after last summer’s fire disaster on Turkey’s Aegean and Mediterranean coasts, you decided to give your own superhero NFT to a certain number of people who donated saplings to Tema Foundation. Only you have to do is; contact the Tema Foundation, ask for the information of all the donors who donated to them, then sign up with a KYC brokerage company for those who want to participate in the NFT lottery, collect all their credentials, compare the data from the Tema Foundation with the kyc company’s data, and determine the winners by drawing among the matching members. When you put it like that, it’s not like it’s the “only thing” you have to do, is it? Moreover, we have compromised on the principles of privacy and decentralization, and we have been excluded from web3.
All those who want to participate in the NFT lottery have to do is say, To go to the Tema Foundation website and create a snark proof of the “donations” page. That’s all there is to it.
When donating seedlings in Tema, it is automatically determined that each user is different from each other because id number entry is mandatory. But wouldn’t it again undermine privacy if the user gave their credentials to Tema? It does not damage the privacy of the web3 universe because the user’s credentials are not disclosed in any way in the web2 universe and during the transport of the necessary information from web2 to web3 with the Mina infrastructure, because the information itself is transported to web3, which is proof of mathematical accuracy.
Inability to Authenticate Anonymous Identity in DAOs
Or you’ve set up a DAO and you want only X University graduates to be able to participate. In DAO applications, where anonymity is essential, it becomes impossible to draw boundaries because there is no possibility of anonymous authentication. However, you only wanted graduates of the university you attended to participate. In such cases, Mina’s zk-Oracle infrastructure is the only solution to validate your real-world data on web3 without having to rely on any resources.
In this case, just like in the TEMA example above, you can connect to the e-government and verify your graduation information and participate in the graduate-specific DAO. In fact, if participation is desired to be tied to more specific requirements, it can be customized for graduates with an average of over 3, or members’ voting weights in DAO can be determined according to graduation averages…
Certificate, License Validation on Web3
Another type of information that needs to be moved from the real world to web3 is certificates and licenses. Oracle is also an essential technology for individuals to prove their real-world capabilities in the web3 universe, where professions, products and even money will become completely decentralized. I do not think it is necessary to specifically exemplify and explain this title, this title will also be understood on the examples above.
Identity, Ownership Verification in Metaverse Universes
Although we are decades away from the fact that the concept of metaverse in theory is compatible with the real one and this exact version is also available to the end user, I would like to give an example because the question “Will metaverse projects be develop in the Mina ecosystem?” is asked a lot.
I answer NFT and Metaverse questions for the Mina ecosystem with the question “Why should it be developed?” because I think it makes the other side think through the right channel.
Why develop a metaverse project in any blockchain? Or why can’t it be developed? You can develop game-like applications called metaverses on all smart contract-powered blockchains. As a matter of fact, it does, and for the purpose of capturing hype, users of each ecosystem are marketed to absurd applications called metaverses. Without further ado, let me talk about the potential of projects that can be developed on the Mina network or projects that can work on a different network and use the Mina infrastructure.
In this article, in which I describe Web3 as a “new universe”, the concept of metaverse –at least as depicted in theories– is one of the most concrete examples of earthlings we have seen. In other words, it is not only at the intellectual level, but also visible and closest to the daily definition of the word world… In these worlds where we build our own world, have a daily routine, maybe have a job and a home, one of the things that will be most needed again will be the determination of identities and class distinctions. With proof of identity, multi-purchases and monopoly can be prevented, and people can have professions in metaverse universes with real license and certificate evidence.
For example, an advertising agency that will open an office in a metaverse universe can define its reference and portfolio on web2 to its company on web3. Or an interpreter who will provide interpreting services by purchasing an office in a business center in the metaverse universe can carry his foreign language certificates from the real world to web3 with Mina’s zk-Oracle infrastructure.
Thank you for reading it. We will be with you in the coming days with more content on this topic. Stay tuned.
