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Your Digital Identity: A New World Of Rules And Surveillance
This was another forwarded article from a MyZucoins subscriber (thanks as always for emailing these in!): “Is the “Handmades Tail” becoming reality? Can Zucoins do anything to avoid this dystopian future?”
The United Nations Development Agency (UNDP) has introduced its framework for digital public infrastructure with the aim of a universal alignment among its 190+ member nations.
The initiative involves the implementation of digital IDs, with nine key points: legal and regulatory frameworks, non-discrimination, access to information, legal accountability, capable institutions, user value, procurement and anti-corruption measures, and data protection.
The Digital Impact Alliance (DIAL) is simultaneously advocating for increased investment in digital public infrastructure (DPI), anticipating various stakeholders’ commitment of $400 million by the end of this decade.
They aim to create a “positive digital future for all individuals globally” by 2030.
This mission aligns with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), with digital components playing a crucial role in reducing poverty and building stronger global economies.
However, the real-world implementation of digital ID systems has raised concerns.
In France, a facial recognition system grants access to about 500 government websites, and physical ID cards now feature a mandatory electronic chip and QR code.
In India, there have been instances where citizens were denied access to welfare programs due to glitches in their ‘Aadhar’ biometric program.
Not to mention the numerous vaccine-passport programs that were in place during the recent pandemic.
The Chinese government has been collecting DNA samples from its citizens to build a comprehensive DNA database and use facial recognition for internet or mobile services.
Their system, often compared to a social credit score, ties a Chinese citizen’s digital ID and behaviors to rewards and penalties, depending on the lifestyle choices a person makes.
For example, if you choose to ride a bicycle to work instead of driving, you might be rewarded with cheaper groceries or an energy bill discount.
This system has resulted in denying plane and high-speed rail ticket purchases to individuals with low social credit scores.
The digital ID agenda is further complicated by the introduction of digital carbon passports, potentially infringing upon personal freedoms under the guise of addressing climate change.
As technology continues to evolve and intertwine with our lives, the balance between necessary action and potential privacy infringement becomes increasingly blurred.
Today’s decisions regarding our digital privacy and consent to surveillance will shape the future in subtle but important ways. Read more here.
New age of money. Bitcoin Vs CBDCs. Privacy and Liberty are at stake.
Managing Your Own Data: Zucoins’ Decentralized Approach
In the face of increasingly invasive digital ID systems, Zucoins offers a reassuring alternative.
Its commitment to user privacy is evident in its design, where most user data remains on the individual’s device, and only recent transactions are cached on the Splitchain network.
Note: By the way, this is only done to avoid re-spending the same coin twice. When a previous sender or receiver closes the app or turns off their device, the next person receiving or sending something needs to be able to prove those previous details are still accurate.
Even more so, only the long, gibberish-looking wallet address used for a transaction is cached on the Splitchain network—not specific contact details such as a person’s name.
Splitchain’s ongoing efforts toward decentralization aim to guard against personal information being stored centrally by default, reducing the potential for privacy infringements.
Instead, these things should be opt-in.
For compliance purposes, it’s up to you to provide those details to corporations or authorities as you need to.
Many payment processors or exchanges will, for example, want to know who you are.
Expectedly, these are rules set by many regulators around the world.
A permissionless system means that anyone can participate in any part of the system.
It’s a key point in an independent system.
If you think about it, it’s how the open market is supposed to work.
Splitchain is distilling these principles onto its network protocol—a ground-up rethink on decentralized systems.
It uses industry-standard and UL-audited encryption methods for its two-way transactions, using both the sender’s and receiver’s verifications, with an in-built expiry time.
This process cryptographically confirms the results, adding a layer of security that most traditional banking and cryptocurrency systems, being one-way transactions, lack.
On the other side, as nations grapple with the implementation of digital ID systems, the Splitchain network, which offers user-friendly and efficient truth-based transactions, could also be used to host the user’s digital ID.
It could be a more privacy-forward approach, using Splitchain’s in-built efficiencies and safety features.
For example, it could be done using an app built on top of the Splitchain network.
There’s nothing to stop anyone from doing this and that’s the point of a truly permissionless and decentralized system.
In a future where personal carbon allowances may become a reality, Splitchain’s commitment to efficiency is resulting in a significant reduction in energy consumption and environmental impact.
Nodes cache data for the Splitchain network and provide it to peers.
As such, most of the process happens on peers’ devices, such as smartphones.
Smartphones use very little energy, so beyond the node network efficiency improvements, offloading the heavy lifting to low-power devices like smartphones via the Zucoins wallet further helps to distribute the energy consumption.
As more milestones are completed and more functionalities are added to the network, it’ll mean that it’s down to people using their Zucoins wallet to decide how they use it and with whom.
Power shifts back towards the individual user.
This highlights the potential of digital assets built on top of the Splitchain network, like the native Zucoins token, to lead the way in sustainable digital transactions, staying ahead of the curve as the digital landscape continues to evolve.
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All the best,
Peter & Rob
MyZucoins
Disclaimer: Of course, this is not advice, financial or otherwise. It’s also important to consider the risks and challenges associated with any potential benefits.