Re: did:cel - a cryptographic event log-based DID Method

Hi Manu,

Interesting work, I like the heartbeat and blind witnessing features. Also,
very comprehensive privacy and security considerations!

One question I had was around how the Read operation works. How does a
resolver determine which storage locations to query for the CEL?

Thanks,
Will


On Mon, Dec 8, 2025 at 2:56 PM Manu Sporny <msporny@digitalbazaar.com>
wrote:

> Hi all,
>
> The DID Methods WG Charter is going up for a W3C Member vote soon and
> one of the DID Method types it contemplates standardizing is a fully
> decentralized DID Method. The Cryptographic Event Log[1] was adopted
> as a Credentials CG work item earlier this year, is listed in the new
> DID Methods WG charter, and hinted at a DID Method that was powered by
> the technology.
>
> This email is to introduce did:cel, a fully decentralized,
> cryptographic event log-based DID Method:
>
> https://digitalbazaar.github.io/did-cel-spec/
>
> The goals of this DID Method are:
>
> Minimal Infrastructure - A single individual with a file hosting
> location can create and control multiple DIDs in a way that the
> identifiers are highly-available and globally recognized.
>
> Near-zero Cost - The cost to create and control multiple DIDs is not
> burdensome to at least 70% of the world's population, which are the
> number of people that have access to the Internet as of 2025.
>
> Censorship and Coercion Resistant - The oblivious witness and file
> storage services used to manage a DID cannot censor or coerce an
> individual or organization to any significant degree.
>
> No Centralization - Witness and file storage services are abundant,
> easy to operate at scale, and are easily interchangeable if they
> become non-responsive or compromised.
>
> Over the years, there are many of us that have invested in DLT-based
> DID Methods and have not seen their usage grow at the rate we would
> wish. There are a number of reasons for this, but many of them boil
> down to implementation and operational complexity as well as
> significant infrastructure and transaction costs. The did:cel DID
> method focuses on reducing each of those costs as much as possible.
>
> Please take a look at the spec and let us know what you think. Raise
> issues here if you find anything of concern:
>
> https://github.com/digitalbazaar/did-cel-spec/issues
>
> We are currently looking for support and co-editors for this work item
> in the W3C CCG and will raise an issue to call for adoption once we
> have a week or two of discussion on this mailing list. If you are
> supportive of this work, please let us know via the mailing list.
> Happy to answer questions and concerns in the meantime. :)
>
> -- manu
>
> [1] https://w3c-ccg.github.io/cel-spec/
>
> --
> Manu Sporny - https://www.linkedin.com/in/manusporny/
> Founder/CEO - Digital Bazaar, Inc.
> https://www.digitalbazaar.com/
>
>