Announcing Zion v2 // a Web5 App
Today we are excited to share our vision for the new technical features we are adding to Zion and what that means for you as a member of our community.
v2 is stronger, better and faster than ever before. Since we launched in August of 2021, we’ve been focused on how we can help people have an open conversation in a safe & secure manner online. Without the manipulation of algorithms.
Imagine a new world where you could…
- log into any site on the web without creating an account?
- switch to new streaming service and keep your preferences
- leave Twitter and Instagram and take all your connections with you
In Zion v2 we are using the newly released Decentralized Web Platform from Block.
Zion v2 will be built in Web5 :)
The vision would allow for each user linked to the network via a DID, and decentralized web node that acts as a secure, private server (accessible only by private key), granting individuals absolute and irrevocable custody over their data. This means that no individual user can use another’s data to manipulate their experience on the platform.
v2 is improvement of 3 core elements that are currently broken on the centralized web.
- Identity
- Messaging & Data Storage
- Payments using The Bitcoin Lightning Network
Identity on the centralized web is broken, as the w3 foundation outlines;
The vast majority of these globally unique identifiers are not under our control. They are issued by external authorities that decide who or what they refer to and when they can be revoked. They are useful only in certain contexts and recognized only by certain bodies not of our choosing. They might disappear or cease to be valid with the failure of an organization. They might unnecessarily reveal personal information. In many cases, they can be fraudulently replicated and asserted by a malicious third-party, which is more commonly known as “identity theft”. This is the core of how censorship begins on the web and our solution enables you to own your identity online for the first time.
Sound like magic? Well,.. it sort of is
If you would like to know the technical jargon behind how this magic works, read bold section below…
When you join Zion you will be assigned a new DID as well a user name. This DID will be secured by a 12 word seed phrase to ensure you privacy and security. Zion has no access to these cryptographic private keys.
Decentralized identifiers (DIDs) are a new type of identifier that enables verifiable, decentralized digital identity. A DID refers to any subject as determined by the controller of the DID private key. In contrast to typical, federated identifiers, DIDs have been designed so that they may be decoupled from centralized registries, identity providers, and certificate authorities. Specifically, while other parties might be used to help enable the discovery of information related to a DID, the design enables the controller of a DID to prove control over it without requiring permission from any other party.
The next piece is how we want to handle messaging & data storage.
Become Censorship Resistant w/ Decentralized Web Nodes:
Most digital activities between people, organizations, devices, and other entities require the exchange of messages and data. For entities to exchange messages and data for credential, app, or service flows, they need an interface through which to store, discover, and fetch data related to the flows and experiences they are participating in.
A Decentralized Web Node (DWN) is a data storage and message relay mechanism entities can use to locate public or private permissioned data related to a given Decentralized Identifier (DID). Decentralized Web Nodes are a mesh-like datastore construction that enable an entity to operate multiple nodes that sync to the same state across one another, enabling the owning entity to secure, manage, and transact their data with others without reliance on location or provider-specific infrastructure, interfaces, or routing mechanisms.
Payments using The Lightning Network:
P2P payments between creators & fans will fuel the Zion app.
The Lightning Network acts as Zion’s native payment infrastructure on our mobile app and relay. Because exchanges of content are secured by the same cryptography that underpins financial transactions, all payments on Zion are instant, immutable, and untraceable.
Nodes connected to the Lightning Network route high volumes of instant micropayments directly between peers, without relying on facilitation or custody from a third party.
The innovation of the Lightning Network is the use of time locked transactions and cryptographic nonces to allow many two party payment channels to form a connected network where payments can be sent over many channels without trusting the intermediate nodes. The topology is similar to IP networks like the internet: packets are routed over many physical links, and the communicating end nodes don’t worry about the route as long as data gets to the destination. This works via a decrementing time lock that permits every intermediate node along the routing path to accept funds only if they forward it along to the next participant, using disclosure of pre images of cryptographic hashes. In the Lightning Network, nodes are not able to seize funds traveling through their channels even if they fail to forward payments or refuse to perform any actions. A node operates without custody of third party funds, which is enforced by a time limited cryptographic script.
Product rollout
We are rolling this out this product in stages.
Building new software is hard. Building new software on new primitives for products that have not existed before is exponentially harder. So it will take time. But good things come to those who wait and persevere. That’s what we’re about at Zion. This blog will allow us to have a transparent in how we are doing with our product updates for you to join us.
Thank you for believing in our mission.
-Zion Team
