4 ms·

Any knowledge held by a person is retrievable with a $5 wrench. Things can get stolen, houses can burn down, bank lockers can be robbed. Identity Changes, such

Any knowledge held by a person is retrievable with a $5 wrench. Things can get stolen, houses can burn down, bank lockers can be robbed. Identity Changes, such as name changes, are relevant in the Web o Trust/GPG world where you typically require a valid ID proof (such as a passport) and physical presence before you sign someone's keys at a Key Signing Party.

olalonde 1y ago
Fire issue is solved with multiple backups or titanium engraving. Theft is solved with secret passphrase that is either memorized or stored in a separate location. The $5 wrench attack (aka kidnapping and torture) is unsolved but it is extremely rare in comparison to the much more common key leaks/theft scenario. And I don't believe any defense is really possible against that one, cryptographically or otherwise. > Identity Changes, such as name changes, are relevant in the Web o Trust/GPG world where you typically require a valid ID proof (such as a passport) and physical presence before you sign someone's keys at a Key Signing Party. It doesn't solve that problem but I don't think "real life" identity is really relevant for the purpose of contributing code. In fact, plenty of open source contributors are pseudonymous.
- alfiedotwtf 1y ago
  It’s kind of a solved problem too, Julian Assange even worked on a file system called Rubberhose - https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deniable_encryption https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deniable_encryption
  - olalonde 1y ago
    It's also a feature of crypto wallets like Ledger which allow you to have a decoy PIN that unlocks a throw away wallet.