Universal ID and the Web3 Disruption that Changes Everything

Centralization is paramount to Universal ID. And Web3 is the antipathy to centralization. Are they compatible and is there a hybrid system that gets to the heart of the need? That being where personal control outweighs convenience? I believe that a hybrid system of selective centralization and decentralized data storage is the ultimate in personal data management. Let’s explore.

Universal ID is about convenience to the user and aggregation of user knowledge across disparate systems. Whether that is in AdTech for marketers or a governments use of passports and ID cards. As a consumer, we oftentimes give up control for convenience. In the US and other parts of the world, many of us use memberships like those at grocery stores to get discounts. But we don’t think about the massive amount of purchase behavior that we put in the hands of the business. If we had a grocery store universal ID where we get cross-store discounts, it would be even more awesome. Or would it?

Data is like a savings account. The more that goes into it, the more that it incrementally grows. The problem is that in most cases, someone owns our data and is filling their own savings accounts with it. Universal IDs allow for the sharing of data across any number of providers with the primary beneficiaries being those organizations participating in the scheme.

Yes, there can be massive benefits to society with Universal ID’s such as for law enforcement and voting integrity. DNA, fingerprint, and facial recognition databases have all helped in ensuring we are presumably safer than without them. Even with personal privacy management using decentralized systems, the common good will continue to be supported by centralized recognition systems. Bridging to the hybrid system of personal control will then be led by the commercial sector. And then bleed over to all facets of data use over time.

The hybrid future of personalized ID interconnected with decentralized and centralized systems brings about privacy, optimized data control, and community value. We do this by fragmenting each ID to the specific application or decentralized application being used. For government applications like voting, there may be an implied approval by the voter to access multiple databases to ensure integrity. Such as a centralized voter registration database tied to an on-phone authentication like biometrics, phone number, etc.

For commercial IDs, the power to control what each business gets should come down to permission from the creator of the data. We may trade full access for deeper store discounts or anonymized and aggregated data access for smaller discounts. And so on. But the choice needs to be ours.

At NexBloc and Multichannel Cyber, we are at the center of the hybrid movement. We are not decentralized purists, nor are we centralized adamants. We are providing a blend of services that give control to the data creator within reason of societal and individual needs. Data privacy, security, transactionally verifiable and authenticated approvals, and much more.

Because Web3 disruption does not allow for Universal ID over-reach. It does, however, bring a new level of ID management and data control for the benefit of individuals and society alike.