How Hypersign is Using Blockchain to Make SSO Mechanisms More Secure
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These days you don’t really need to have an account on numerous platforms if you don’t want to. Most users tend to have two or three accounts that they use everywhere, since you can usually use these major accounts to create profile through data that already exists on servers based on the services that you take advantage of. It’s pretty common to log in to some service or the other using your Facebook or Google credentials, and this has most definitely enabled web navigation to become more seamless and intuitive.
The protocol that is used to facilitate this type of convenient web navigation is called an SSO mechanism, and it saves users from the hassle of having to remember a number of different usernames and the passwords that might go with said usernames. That said, while this login protocol does make things easier in some respects, it has a number of problems associated with it as well that definitely need to be addressed. These problems mostly have to do with security and privacy, and there are two main ways in which users can end up being compromised in this regard.
First and foremost, the fact that so many login credentials are found in one place means that hackers will only need to gain access to a single server in order to obtain vast quantities of user data. This is mostly caused by an overreliance on password based authentication protocols, and while these mechanisms have worked fairly well, the constant security breaches that have been occurring indicate that a change needs to be made. However, most social login providers might be hesitant to give up any control they might have over this much user data for one very good reason.
Basically, companies like Facebook and Google quite often end up using this data for their own purposes. The truly sinister aspect of this sort of thing is that they usually don’t ask users for consent before doing this type of thing, and a rather pertinent example of this that we can think of is the Cambridge Analytica scandal. This means that users suffer from a distinct lack of privacy, and this is where a service like Hypersign can come in and potentially revolutionize the concept of social login by overhauling it in its entirety.
Companies like Facebook and Google are referred to as Identity Providers, or IDPs, in this context, and Hypersign makes it so that said Identity Providers can verify user data and give them a certificate of authenticity that other services can rely on without making it necessary for said Identity Providers to have to store user data on a server. The Hypersign Identity Network uses blockchain technology to facilitate an easy exchange between IDPs, users and the services that users might be trying to avail.
The use of a decentralized network can solve the vast majority of the issues that the SSO mechanism currently faces by creating public keys that can then be used to facilitate an easy login process. A major first step that needs to be taken is an onboarding of all three actors that take part in this process, namely the IDP, the service provider or SP as well as the user of course. The public key is actually a bit of a misnomer because it’s never actually made public, rather it is verified through the use of what is called a decentralized identifier which is a great deal more secure than just dumping all of the data in a server that anyone could end up accessing.
Basically, the verification of user credentials through an IDP can become private for all concerned parties, and various entities can choose to add more data to the blockchain if necessary which is the type of thing that can come in particularly handy for banks and the like. The use of this type of decentralized network for login credentials isn’t just limited to increased security for logins either. This is a highly versatile innovation, and it has a number of uses that extend beyond this, many of which have to do with the NFT markets that are starting to pop up.
The verifiable credential that a user takes advantage of to log in to various locations can be turned into an NFT, and this creates a lot of value for content creators as well. Many content creators often fear the loss of their login credentials but with Hypersign this can be turned into the sort of thing that can generate some real profit. The average user would also get a chance to profit from the creation of NFTs for login credentials, and this might solve one of the deepest underlying issues currently afflicting the world of tech.
Major tech companies often get heavily criticized for profiting off of user data as has already been mentioned before, but if a user creates a verifiable credential based on the Hypersign blockchain and then mints this into an NFT, they would have full control over who gets to access any part of their data. Hence, if they ever choose to give a brand or a company access to this data, this would involve the sale of this NFT which can generate revenue for them.
The best part of this NFT marketplace is that users would get 90% of the revenue that is generated. Only about 10% would be retained by the service provider for the purpose of maintaining liquidity into the market, and this can do a lot to democratize the buying and selling of data online. Taking advantage of user data is an inescapable reality of the modern world, but Hypersign can at least make it a bit less predatory for users and can give said users the chance to have a bit more control over such matters in the long run.
