_{Or, will genomic data finally put an end to sock puppets and sybils in trust-networks?}

Idea < Money < Politics < Technology

One of the most difficult problems ever faced in open, decentralised networks is to have a design that minimises the effects of sock puppets and sybil attacks, particularly from those with vested interests (usually serving extreme greed at the expense of the greater network). But they've never been solved well enough to ensure any better fidelity of fairness in operation and distribution. Adding zero-knowledge protocols in the mix, genomic data-signed transactions may stand to be the holy grail for trust-networks.

In the case for any "fair" coin distribution, imagine what would it be like to have genomic data in the mix as part of any decentralised network's trust protocol. So the question now is - how do we even begin to ascertain that any genomic data used to sign off transactions come from real or fake signals?

First of all, I think genomic data produces highly novel signatures, and anyone would face difficulty in generating their own "legit" genomic data without access to specialised equipment. If the scenario turns out that it's rather easy to generate fake genomic data afterall, trust networks could could still anchor on genealogical comparisons between any party's genomic data in some private, zero-knowledge way.

Secondly, genomic data could be so valuable that nobody with a sane mind would share them with anyone at all, which is why genetically-augmented trust on the blockchain will require absolute highest levels of privacy and security.

But now you might be thinking - such valuable data could only hurt the common person that will likely not secure their data sufficiently. Think again.. in proof-of-whatever, the problem is not really in any common person's sock puppets and sybils. Their effects are usually mitigated well enough in most blockchain designs, so perhaps such a measure isn't required. But the bigger problem comes from big money interest, as usual. So in that sense, genomic signatures could prove to serve well for trust-networks involving anything whale-like from accounts, activities, and transactions. It may not be too "unfair" to implement weighted genomic-trust protocols for those in place of huge rewards / stakes / power (high risk, high rewards in action).

It could fundamentally be impossible to ascertain real / fake information (can any signatures be proven to be 100% authentic in every sense imaginable?). But something just tells me that it may be possible with genomic data. Of course, genetic mutations or whatever random screw-ups could also unfairly punish innocent identities. Not even sure if I'm making any sense in this post, but it's 6.00 am! Thanks for reading!

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Also, I found this earlier - Gene-ChainCoin. Not sure what it is though! Maybe I'll go through it when I have the time. Maybe some of you scientists can have a crack at it!