Germany's Merz calls for real names on the internet | dpa international
dpa-international.com

cross-posted from : https://lemmy.zip/post/59424100

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has called for an end to widespread anonymity on the internet, saying users should post under their real names.

  • fierysparrow89@lemmy.world
    5·
    2 days ago

    I wonder why such discussions are always framed as an all or nothing propositions. Zero knowledge systems are a decades old invention. Just very briefly: based on some ID a site issues cryptographycally signed tokens claiming some fact, e.g. the requester being an actual real person, adulthood, etc. Such a token could be presented by an otherwise anonymous user to a 2nd site with their own signature as proof of said property in order to consume their service. Tokens could even be single use.

    A requirement to prove someone is, in fact, a human is not unreasonable. Banning bots or bad actors could be a solution to a lot of the problems on social media etc…

    There is naturally a major shortcoming of this scheme, authoritarians could not track people…

    • FineCoatMummy@sh.itjust.works
      1·
      17 hours ago

      Zero knowledge systems

      I like this idea, it’s very interesting. Yet I always end up wondering how it could go sideways.

      A one time token (as in per message) seems onerous. A multi use token attesting “this is a human” could be sold to a bad actor using it to allow non-humans to masquerade as humans. We already see something like that on big social media where human accounts are sold to troll farms.