Beautiful Virgin Islands

Wednesday, Aug 27, 2025

Don't Let Facebook Control Your Online Identity, 'Ethereum Sign-In' Is Coming

Don't Let Facebook Control Your Online Identity, 'Ethereum Sign-In' Is Coming

David Z. Morris points out the dangers of letting Facebook control your online identity. He argues that one alternative would use your Ethereum wallet instead, and let you control your own data.

Over the past few weeks, Facebook has been raked over the coals in the press and U.S. Congress for practices that are hard to regard as anything short of evil. In essence, the company allegedly knew for years that its algorithms were pointing users to content that was harmful in a variety of ways, but did nothing, because change would mean losing money.

If you’ve ever used your Facebook account to log into another service online, you’ve been helping the social network make your online experience more toxic, even if you’re not a user of Facebook.com itself. Or maybe you do much the same using Google or Apple identity services. All involve major trade-offs – like possibly having your data shared with U.S. intelligence.

It’s one of the core quandaries of today’s internet. While the ‘net’s inherent anonymity is definitely a good thing, it leaves users of ID-reliant tools in thrall to major centralized identity providers and their seemingly inevitable abuses. Blockchain developers have long talked about developing “decentralized” identity standards to save us from the dangers of Big Login, and at least one significant step towards that future appears imminent: Sign-in With Ethereum is coming.

It’s just what it sounds like: a standard way to use an Ethereum wallet that you own as an identifier across multiple services. If your first thought is, “my name isn’t even attached to my ETH wallet,” that’s exactly the point: Using a cryptographic marker as an identity means the user, not the identity provider, has total control over what information is associated with it. Eventually, you’ll be able to decide, for instance, whether a particular service needs your name, proof of your age, or a glimpse of your ETH balance. You won’t have to send all that information to every service you use.0 seconds of 6 minutes, 45 secondsVolume 40%

The standard is being developed by Spruce Systems, cofounded by former ConsenSys staffers, which won a recent development RFP from the Ethereum Foundation and Ethereum Name Service. The initial goals are modest (always a good sign, in my book).

“We’re starting with not as serious, not as strong identity,” says Spruce co-founder and CEO Wayne Chang. “Because we want to be battle tested. In the short to medium term it’s more like social media credentials that tie their Twitter handles to a blockchain … We don’t want to provide [know your customer] credentials for buying millions of dollars of financial securities right yet,” though that’s a possibility down the road.

Applications for this initial iteration, according to Spruce, are more likely to include lower-security uses like gating content for non-fungible token (NFT) holders. But, eventually, by integrating secure off-chain storage, Sign-in With Ethereum (let’s just call it SIWE) could also offer “strong” options such as government ID. Users will be able to control access to that data on a case-by-case basis and remove or disassociate it at will.

One significant hurdle for SIWE is the inherent risk of reusing any identifier, particularly an address that can likely be pretty easily linked to wallets used for financial activity. While the idea of using multiple or disposable wallets as a security measure is familiar to crypto users, it’s probably a bridge too far for normies, at least for now – one more reason SIWE is starting with baby steps.

Spruce regards its work as a community project, and it is holding weekly community calls as it develops the SIWE standard. Information about those calls and how to participate should be coming soon at Login.xyz.

Source: Don't Let Facebook Control Your Online Identity, 'Ethereum Sign-In' Is Coming – Fintechs.fi

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Spotify’s Strange Move: The Feature Nobody Asked For – Returns
Manhunt in Australia: Armed Anti-Government Suspect Kills Police Officers Sent to Arrest Him
China Launches World’s Most Powerful Neutrino Detector
How Beijing-Linked Networks Shape Elections in New York City
Ukrainian Refugee Iryna Zarutska Fled War To US, Stabbed To Death
Elon Musk Sues Apple and OpenAI Over Alleged App Store Monopoly
2 Australian Police Shot Dead In Encounter In Rural Victoria State
Vietnam Evacuates Hundreds of Thousands as Typhoon Kajiki Strikes; China’s Sanya Shuts Down
UK Government Delays Decision on China’s Proposed London Embassy Amid Concerns Over Redacted Plans
A 150-Year Tradition to Be Abolished? Uproar Over the Popular Central Park Attraction
A new faith called Robotheism claims artificial intelligence isn’t just smart but actually God itself
Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner Purchases Third Property Amid Housing Tax Reforms Debate
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Italian Facebook Group Sharing Intimate Images Without Consent Shut Down Amid Police Investigation
Dutch Foreign Minister Resigns Amid Deadlock Over Israel Sanctions
Trump and Allies Send Messages of Support to Ukraine on Independence Day Amid Ongoing Conflict
China Reels as Telegram Chat Group Shares Hidden-Camera Footage of Women and Children
Sam Nicoresti becomes first transgender comedian to win Edinburgh Comedy Award
Builders uncover historic human remains in Lancashire house renovation
Australia Wants to Tax Your Empty Bedrooms
MotoGP Cameraman Narrowly Avoids Pedro Acosta Crash at Hungarian Grand Prix
FBI Investigates John Bolton Over Classified Documents in High-Profile Raids
Report reveals OpenAI pitched national ChatGPT Plus subscription to UK ministers
Labour set to freeze income tax thresholds in long-term 'stealth' tax raid
Coca‑Cola explores sale of Costa coffee chain
Trial hears dog walker was chased and fatally stabbed by trio
Restaurateur resigns from government hospitality council over tax criticism
Spanish City funfair shut after serious ride injury
Suspected arson at Ilford restaurant leaves three in critical condition
Tottenham beat Manchester City to go top of Premier League
Bank holiday heatwave to hit 30°C before remnants of Hurricane Erin arrive
UK to deploy immigration advisers to West Africa to block fake visas
Nurse who raped woman continued working for a year despite police alert
Drought forces closures of England’s canal routes, canceling boat holidays
Sweet tooth scents: food-inspired perfumes surge as weight-loss drugs suppress appetites
Experts warn Britain dangerously reliant on imported food
Family of Notting Hill Carnival murder victim call event unmanageable
Bunkers, Billions and Apocalypse: The Secret Compounds of Zuckerberg and the Tech Giants
Ukraine Declares De Facto War on Hungary and Slovakia with Terror Drone Strikes on Their Gas Lifeline
Animated K-pop Musical ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Becomes Netflix’s Most-Watched Original Animated Film
New York Appeals Court Voids Nearly $500 Million Civil Fraud Penalty Against Trump While Upholding Fraud Liability
Elon Musk tweeted, “Europe is dying”
Far-Right Activist Convicted of Incitement Changes Gender and Demands: "Send Me to a Women’s Prison" | The Storm in Germany
Hungary Criticizes Ukraine: "Violating Our Sovereignty"
Will this be the first country to return to negative interest rates?
Child-free hotels spark controversy
North Korea is where this 95-year-old wants to die. South Korea won’t let him go. Is this our ally or a human rights enemy?
Hong Kong Launches Regulatory Regime and Trials for HKD-Backed Stablecoins
China rehearses September 3 Victory Day parade as imagery points to ‘loyal wingman’ FH-97 family presence
×