Re: Digital Sovereignty as a unique value proposition of DIDs and a top priority candidate for common good work.

Hi Steven,

I think governments will be still interested to prove people's identities. What they are not interested in - is to be responsible for the security of these digital identities (to manage database of password's hashes). They want people to have private keys to their identities - which is decentralized, more robust architecture.

Digital Sovereignty - does not mean independence from all and anything. It means being equal, having peer to peer, interdependent relationships with all (people, organizations or governments).
 
Just as a country, in order to be internationally  recognized, it not only needs to declare its independence, but also to receive acknowledgments from its peers - other countries; the digital identity of the human individual will also need acknowledgments from its peers, including governments. Important to note, that the government, becomes a peer in the digital relationship between Self-Sovereign Identities, not a lord and holder of the identities. Probably, government will be the most important peer - first among equals, but it will still be peer in the digital realm, as there it has the same power as any other SSI. Meaning, governments will not be able to delete your SSI, arrest money or digital assets controlled by your SSI, eavesdrop on your communications. 
Of course, it will still be able to cede relationships with you, prohibit for your SSI access to its services and benefits, push around other SSIs to not have relationships with you. Even though, collectively, people will have more bargaining power, transparency and confidence in dealings with governments, especially in politically less fortunate parts of the world.

But Digital Sovereignty is not that much about equality in relationships with governments, it is more about having ultimate, secure control over ones digital assets and communication in general. It is about creating more resilient, secure, transparent, privacy preserving, cost effective system of cooperation for people, organization and governments.

-- Bohdan

 ---- On Mon, 19 Nov 2018 20:25:52 +0200 Steven Rowat <steven_rowat@sunshine.net> wrote ---- 
 > On 2018-11-19 6:59 AM, Bohdan Andriyiv wrote: 
 > >> Moses 
 > >> I wish we could come up with a simple catchy and clever description of the SSI value proposition. ... 
 > >  
 > > I usually explain value proposition of DIDs, SSI like this: 
 > > 1. /Explain what it gives./ SSI enables your digital sovereignty. 
 >  
 > Hmm...and putting this together with what somebody said in these  
 > discussions recently that governments are quite happy not to have to  
 > 'prove' people's identities...then...: 
 >  
 > In a sense issuing our own DID Doc is like issuing our own passport;  
 > which key-pair cryptography now allows us to do. 
 >  
 > In other words, each human being is as if becoming a separate  
 > government, which issues one, or a series, of passports (pseudonymous  
 > ones), each of which nonetheless represents that same original person  
 > (or company, organization, thing, etc.) 
 >  
 > ? 
 >  
 > Steven 
 >  
 >  
 >  
 >  
 >

Received on Monday, 19 November 2018 20:01:01 UTC