Join us as we dive into our first expedition topic: Identity.
Why is digital identity important to you?
In what real world applications do you see digital identity taking stronghold in the next decade (be creative, think outside the box)?
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Iâm just looking for a crypto sugar papi
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Digital identity is important to me for multiple reasons.
Unlocks uniquie social expression and distinctions between irl and url me. I can be a man of many hats. But only I choose what to wear or who sees my closet, spanning the entire spectrum of KYC-to-anon. So many hats. So many occassions.
And in turn, each hat can have a real world application.
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Government identity like Centrapass provider for New Zealand.
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KYC attestation in a pseudononymous environment like Otto Blockchain.
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Elibility for free beer like causality x rstlss NPC unlock at a live event.
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Privacy abstraction credentialing like Sismo + zk. Or pseudonymous like Disco. To broader proof-of-human campaigns like Gitcoin Passport.
Ultimately, the most important RWA of digital ID is providing the foundation of truth in a post-truth world (credit Jamie Burke for this observation on Twitter).
Did you say that? Where you actually there? Are you human? Are you a trustworthy human? Do you have access? Are you of age? Based on what? And so forth.
Central to digital ID are blockchain truth machines, enabling digital ID to travel just as fast as the underlying information.
Digital ID is a necessary evolution of an increasingly digital world. Without it, we are left with slow moving trust assumptions.
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Digital identity is important because, amongst other things, it lends or leaves a certain degree of credibility to whatever youâre interacting with inside of a potentially extremely anonymous environment.
Assuming your digital identity is unique and not something that can easily be discarded, most rationale actors can now be incentivized to conduct their digital activity in a manner that is perceived as beneficial to themselves, for example acting as a decentralized intermediary to resolve disputes or maybe even act as an âescrowâ.
Without digital identity that is quasi permanent, we will continue to have to wade through the infinite that is the internet and be our own judges for every topic anyone wants to explore.
In the future with a trustable identity, I think it could become the new de facto identification card. For those who are well sci-fi versed, think Enders Game when Peter and valentine wiggin, enter the political sphere as children and change the world despite being children. I think you could see instances where voices from the far reaches of society that many would ignore simply from where they originate could lend credence without having to have the traditional credentials associated with authority.
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In places like where many of us live, having a government issued ID, birth certificate or online profile is a given. We donât even think twice about it. But there are loads of people worldwide who donât have this luxury. Imagine not being able to prove who you are, missing out on basic services, or feeling invisible. As we get more digital, weâve got to remember how lucky we are and make sure everyone can have a safe and recognized identity, both offline and online.
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digital identity is important but not necessary 
Interesting take. Care to elaborate?
The name Metamask comes from âthe thing you use to manage your many identities.â
I think it will become commonplace for people to use multiple identities like this.
You should be able to decide for yourself whether you want to associate them or hide them.
Or do you need a one-of-a-kind identity that includes everything?
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Digital identity is important to me because we now live in a digital world outside of our normal lives. Unlike normal life, this digital life is very open to manipulation and deception. There are many bot accounts and it can be difficult to distinguish what is real and what is not. For this reason, I think digital identity will gain more importance day by day.
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yes, please elaborate. cc: @TiborTheMan
If I think about my own personal history, from birth certificate, to SSN, to driverâs license, to college degree, to work badge, to professional credential, to credit score, to sports team fan, to video game player, to band groupie, and the progression of paper record silos to digitization and centralization into endless hacks and breaches of trust into an internet driving towards sign-in with google/facebook as the only option, who reads all my personal emails and manipulates my subconcious, the current pendulum has swung much to far to centralized data aggregation under the notion of âone-of-a-kindâ simplicity.
Digital ID lets us swing back the other way, towards verifiable optionality that I much prefer to the current paradigm (more akin to paper record silos, paper ticket stubs, actual game cartridges, etcâŚbut as flexible as digital records).
Different hats, different occassions. Or backpacks. Or whatever metaphor suits your fancy.
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This is one of the old internet memes that existed in Japan.
All posts other than yours were written by me!
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Importance of Digital Identity:
In an increasingly digital world, our online presence often serves as the first impression we make. Digital identity is crucial for personal and professional connections.
Digital identity is a key component of online security. Protecting oneâs digital identity helps prevent identity theft, fraud, and other cybercrimes.
Digital identities are often the gateway to various online services, from social media platforms to e-commerce sites. Having a secure and verified digital identity streamlines access to these services.
Real-World Applications in the Next Decade:
With the growing importance of health data, digital identities could play a pivotal role in healthcare. Imagine a digital health passport that securely stores your medical history, vaccination records, and relevant health information. This could facilitate faster and more secure access to healthcare services, especially in emergency situations or when traveling.
As environmental awareness increases, there could be a shift towards incorporating environmental data into digital identities. Individuals might have a âgreen scoreâ reflecting their carbon footprint, sustainable practices, and contributions to environmental causes. This could influence everything from job opportunities to access to certain privileges or services.
In the realm of education, digital identities could evolve into comprehensive learning profiles. These profiles could include not just academic achievements but also learning styles, extracurricular interests, and social skills. Educational institutions and employers could use these profiles to tailor learning experiences and job placements.
With the rise of virtual worlds and metaverse concepts, digital identity might extend to virtual citizenship. Individuals could have a digital identity associated with specific virtual communities, influencing their rights, responsibilities, and interactions within these digital spaces.
As technology continues to advance, the integration of digital identity into various aspects of our lives is inevitable. These applications could reshape how we interact with the world, emphasizing the need for secure, privacy-respecting, and interoperable digital identity systems.
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Love the idea of how this plays into highly sensitive information like medical data. Also agree of the opportunities re: environmental awareness. Would like to explore that even one step further as it pertains to validating things like carbon offset credits.
Thanks for the thought-provoking response 
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In what real world applications do you see digital identity taking stronghold in the next decade (be creative, think outside the box)?
I think there will be two main categories for digital identities:
- Public
- Private or secured.
Public
Could be anything from blogs to games (identity on certain game or platform). Main reason for public identity is to define your reputation across other people. This has infinite amount of use cases in all social settings.
Private
This form of identity includes your own tendencies, what you know, what you like to consume, what youâre interested at, what youâve done, what youâre trying to accomplish or who you know. People wouldnât care about this as it would work as a âback-endâ and you would only to become aware of it if it does not exists. Main goal for this identity would be to improve user experience across the ecosystems or store sensitive information.
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