RE: Indexing/searching a corpus of (decentralized) self-sovereign data

Upon further reflection, I re-read some of Daniel’s comments in his article regarding the relationship between agency and ‘self-sovereign-ism.’ By my read, the focus is on the ability to control or influence data that has been ‘put out there.’ In my view, the scale and speed at which data can move today coupled with the profound lack of natural data entropy (I think this is a Huseby-ism that describes how very slowly data in digital format naturally degrades over time or distance; thanks David!), makes any data that is communicated with anyone virtually impossible to control once it has been shared. Agency, in this sense, can probably only come into play through other means, like the legal system, fines, the sheer volume of data out there, or I dunno maybe even protocol standards or smart contracts can play some role from a technical perspective. In any event I think the concept of having agency or self-sovereignty over data does exist in-general, but gets wickedly hard to execute on once data is exposed outside of certain boundaries.

 

From: Michael Herman (Trusted Digital Web) <mwherman@parallelspace.net> 
Sent: Wednesday, November 16, 2022 12:05 PM
To: steve.e.magennis@gmail.com; 'Daniel Hardman' <daniel.hardman@gmail.com>
Cc: 'public-credentials' <public-credentials@w3.org>
Subject: RE: Indexing/searching a corpus of (decentralized) self-sovereign data

 

RE: I would argue that both types of data can be ‘self-sovereign’

 

I agree Steve …and given the categories you describe, it’s a question of which (default) capability authorizations (aka rights aka “my boundaries”) are assumed/stipulated for each category of data/information.  In effect, all data is “self-sovereign” with different explicit or implicit rights granted to different audiences.

 

From: steve.e.magennis@gmail.com <mailto:steve.e.magennis@gmail.com>  <steve.e.magennis@gmail.com <mailto:steve.e.magennis@gmail.com> > 
Sent: Wednesday, November 16, 2022 7:58 PM
To: 'Daniel Hardman' <daniel.hardman@gmail.com <mailto:daniel.hardman@gmail.com> >; Michael Herman (Trusted Digital Web) <mwherman@parallelspace.net <mailto:mwherman@parallelspace.net> >
Cc: 'public-credentials' <public-credentials@w3.org <mailto:public-credentials@w3.org> >
Subject: RE: Indexing/searching a corpus of (decentralized) self-sovereign data

 

Ker-pow!

If I run a company. I have lots of internal work product, protected IP, etc. I also have lots of public promotional material, position pieces, etc. The second category of stuff exists under the assumption that it will be indexed, consumed, combined, sampled and re-mixed without further involvement or negotiation of terms of usage from my company. If someone pushes my boundaries of acceptable use too far, I have the option to take action to resolve my perceived harm.

 

Things become potentially very problematic however if stuff in the first category gets indexed or consumed without my explicit authorization and / or (re)negotiation of terms of usage. So much so that if the wrong stuff gets into the wrong hands, it could destroy my business.

 

I would argue that both types of data can be ‘self-sovereign’ but they exist in special categories based on my risk assessment and my intent for the content. I know I’m using a business as an example, but I believe it translates well, or perhaps should inform how we think about individual data.

 

-S

 

From: Daniel Hardman <daniel.hardman@gmail.com <mailto:daniel.hardman@gmail.com> > 
Sent: Tuesday, November 15, 2022 6:09 PM
To: Michael Herman (Trusted Digital Web) <mwherman@parallelspace.net <mailto:mwherman@parallelspace.net> >
Cc: public-credentials (public-credentials@w3.org <mailto:public-credentials@w3.org> ) <public-credentials@w3.org <mailto:public-credentials@w3.org> >
Subject: Re: Indexing/searching a corpus of (decentralized) self-sovereign data

 

I think this is to some degree a contradiction in terms. Data is self-sovereign only if its sovereign exercises authority over its consumption and use. Putting data into an index presupposes that it will be used in contexts that are divorced from the sovereign's involvement. While it is true that the sovereign can give prior consent to all future use, I think it then ceases to become self-sovereign data, by definition.

This is the essence of the beef I have with making W3C VCs part of the semantic web, as I wrote about here: https://daniel-hardman.medium.com/actors-objects-and-linked-data-7f60701af9bd 

 

On Tue, Nov 15, 2022 at 11:22 AM Michael Herman (Trusted Digital Web) <mwherman@parallelspace.net <mailto:mwherman@parallelspace.net> > wrote:

As I started to think about this, it turns out that it is not a straightforward problem (and hence, neither is the solution).

Is anyone aware of any previous discussions on this topic, articles, papers, etc. that analyze this problem and, perhaps, characterize what a solution might look like?

Thank you,
Michael

Best regards,
Michael Herman
Far Left Self-Sovereignist
First Principles Thinker

Self-Sovereign Blockchain Architect
Trusted Digital Web
Hyperonomy Digital Identity Lab
Parallelspace Corporation

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