4 ms·
Got to say: I can't really think of a better way to solve trust problems in a peer-to-peer lending platform between strangers. You could use monetary collateral
by Uptrenda 10y ago
Got to say: I can't really think of a better way to solve trust problems in a peer-to-peer lending platform between strangers. You could use monetary collateral but if people could do that they wouldn't need to borrow in the first place.
Other options include legal contracts but then again, the kinds of people who accept these loans wouldn't be approved for a regular loan and hence suing them is unlikely to be cost effective. That really only leaves the threat of violence and most small time lenders aren't going to have the resources to do that.
Still, I am surprised that anyone would agree to do this. The deal to me seems incredibly one-sided since you're still having to trust that the other person will go through with the loan -after- you give them the collateral - and that's a huge risk in my opinion. The protocol here could be improved by using an escrow agent but once again that does not completely eliminate trust.
Information is sometimes more liquid than cash ...
- quink 10y ago> Got to say: I can't really think of a better way to solve trust problems in a peer-to-peer lending platform between strangers. You've got to consider the people who just don't care about nude pics being sent to work mates/friends/relatives. Free money for them? Yes please. Hell, for the right price I'll do it. Especially if it's just a straight up nude instead of something compromising or whatnot.
- Uptrenda 10y agoI think the biggest problem is photoshop. I can't imagine many people wanting that to happen to them.
- CmdrSprinkles 10y agoConceptually, I think it is a horrifying yet good idea. But it definitely needs a mechanism to better handle the images themselves. I think snapchat or whatever has a mechanism to (attempt to) prevent screenshots and to delete the images after a criteria is met (time limited, if memory serves)? An open source solution on a trusted server would help a lot with this. Getting more in to institutional solutions here (and if the loan seekers were able to be approved by those they wouldn't need it), but I could see something like: 1. Seeker and Lender agree to terms. Specifically interest rates and minimum payment requirements. 2. Seeker takes photo and uploads to service. 3. Seeker then uses service to blur out particularly sensitive portions while leaving face visible. Lender sees that image exists, and either approves or requests a different blurring to ensure body shaming will be sufficient 4. Seeker must then register all payments with service (bitcoin would actually be a great solution to this, funny enough). If service does not recognize sufficient payment being made by all dates, image is sent, unblurred, to lender to use as they see fit 5. Once terms of loan are complete, image is deleted. This is the biggest problem as we know the data won't be deleted, if only because getting it out of all the back-ups is a huge hassle.
- hd4 10y agoThere is no mechanism to stop someone taking an analogue copy of the picture with a secondary camera even if it's on Snapchat/a server somewhere and then "using" it later. The whole idea just seems poorly thought out. Unless the idea is for both sides to have mutual nude pictures of each other but then to hold them indefinitely. This just wouldn't work otherwise.
- CmdrSprinkles 10y agoThat is why I mentioned the blurring. your lender can easily (or not so easily) screenshot the proof of nudity, but all they get is a blurred out picture that they can confirm face, verify identity, and verify nudity (while bodysuits and pasties are a thing, you can still blur enough to maintain SOME privacy while verifying nudity). While there is still room for abuse, it becomes not much worse than any photoshopped nude. Same with relying on a third party to delete it and handle transmission. But, again, nothing ever really gets deleted which is where it falls through.
- tmp-20161121 10y agoCompletely off topic, but a google image search for pasties leads to a real 'one of these things is not like the others' moment.
- Uptrenda 10y agoI wouldn't recommend this. There are neural networks that can unblur many different algorithms with surprising accuracy.
- fnordsensei 10y agoIt's only worthwhile as collateral if the consequence of defaulting is expensive enough, and that's culturally variable. To achieve the same level existential anxiety for someone living in the US, you would probably have to take out one of your kidneys and put it in storage with the risk of having it sold or destroyed.
- mcguire 10y agoOther options include all the more traditional loan sharkish approaches. Extortion material as collateral is one I hadn't heard of before, though.