Carl Ellison writes:
I see no way to guarantee uniqueness of the person unless you manage to incorporate some unique characteristic of a person (right hand print, for example) into a digital signature.
PEM's key certificates might be an attempt to guarantee uniqueness but even there I can cheat by having a second job under a second name, for example, and getting a certificate in both.
I don't know if we've ever talked on this list about the "is-a-person" protocols discussed in several "Crypto" papers, namely, the Fiat-Shamir passport scheme for credentialling persons, the ability to spoof with the complicity of states (e.g., Libya conspires to create false "is-a-person" passports for its agents), etc. I don't like the idea of state-run registries of "legal persons." Better to live with the occasional vagaries of digital pseuodonyms than to ban them. (And multiple identies can have many uses, some good, some not. Welcome to the future.) Since it may touch on our "cypherpunks agenda," I plan to read up on some of these proposals for "is-a-person" credentialling and see how they might relate to schemes for centralized key registration or escrow. Any suggestion besides the "Crypto" proceedings? --Tim May -- .......................................................................... Timothy C. May | Crypto Anarchy: encryption, digital money, tcmay@netcom.com | anonymous networks, digital pseudonyms, zero 408-688-5409 | knowledge, reputations, information markets, W.A.S.T.E.: Aptos, CA | black markets, collapse of governments. Higher Power: 2^756839 | Public Key: PGP and MailSafe available. Note: I put time and money into writing this posting. I hope you enjoy it.