A blockchain ID is a unique identifier that is secured by a blockchain. Blockchain IDs are simultaneously secure, human-meaningful, and decentralized, thereby overcoming Zooko's triangle. Users can cryptographically link their blockchain IDs to a profile containing arbitrary information (e.g. name, biography, website link, public key, and social graph), by associating a hash of the profile with the ID registered on the blockchain. Blockchain IDs work with Blockchain Auth to eliminate passwords and third parties from the user authentication flow of websites and applications, creating a decentralized Single Sign-On (SSO) system.
Several tools are needed to register, resolve, view, and authenticate blockchain IDs:
- Blockstore, which is used for registering blockchain IDs on the Bitcoin blockchain. Blockstore has an external storage system built-in for storing profile data off-chain.
- Blockstore-client, which provides an interface for creating and managing blockchain IDs, blockchain ID namespaces, and storage records associated with them.
- Blockchain-auth-js or blockchain-auth-python, libraries that support generating, decoding and verifying auth request and auth response tokens.
Optional software that can be used for building blockchain ID services includes:
- Resolver, a scalable server for resolving username-to-profile-data mappings.
- Registrar, software for registering and updating blockchain IDs.
- DHT mirror, software that improves read/write performance for the Blockstore DHT.
- Indexer, for information on names registered on the blockchain, the associated data, blockchain transactions etc. JSON interface for calls to a processed index (stored in a database).
- Virtual chain, a Python library for creating virtual blockchains on top of a well-known cryptocurrency.
- Secure communications applications
- User authentication for apps and websites
- Human-readable cryptocurrency addresses
- Infrastructure for the Internet of Things
- Streamline KYC/AML compliance
- Alternative to the Domain Name System
- Alternative to Certificate Authorities
- Alternative to insecure identifiers e.g. Social Security Numbers
More information about blockchain IDs, including the latest software, formats, and schema, can be found in the Blockchain ID Wiki.