The speed of progress in human civilization is so fast that many people can't adapt in time, but the cost of progress has made trust a significant problem.
I wonder if anyone has noticed that there are no longer scenes of neighbors helping each other. As the population decreases, trust between people is like a thin piece of paper, easily torn.
If you ask me: what is the one thing I least want to lend to others?
The answer is money; money is just a facade, and the deeper meaning is the loss of trust.
Who are you? What is our relationship? Why should I lend you money? If I lend you money, will you pay me back on time? How can I trust that you have the ability to pay me back?
This is precisely the direction of @SignOfficial effort.
Because trust is lacking, we need to build trust. So how do we build trust? One word, still a piece of paper, still a video? Or bank statements?
In this era dominated by AI, it seems that these things are no longer reliable. The current crypto world is even more so, with fake KOL promotions and a myriad of witch accounts. The cost of trust has become increasingly expensive. Our on-chain identity interactions are also like scattered fragments of four soul jewels. Each piece has value but can never be pieced together into a complete trustworthy network.
Therefore, we need to sign, and we need the core cryptography behind it—VC, which stands for verifiable credential, meaning a credential that can be verified.
VC is essentially like a digital passport or diploma in our real life; it is signed by a trusted issuer, granted to the holder, and can be verified by any third party through cryptography in a zero-knowledge manner.
It has strong privacy; I can prove that I am over 18, but I do not have to reveal my exact date of birth.
It is also tamper-proof, based on cryptographic signatures, and any secondary processing or forgery will immediately reveal its true nature.
So what practical scenarios will VC-based signing unlock in the future?
First, we can achieve uncollateralized or low-collateral DeFi lending. As I mentioned at the beginning of my article, when I do not know or trust you, I will not and dare not lend you money. But now, with this VC-based mechanism, I can see your level at a glance and then decide whether to lend you money.
Secondly, in the world of Web3, real identity verification based on VC can eliminate some studio bots and reward genuine players.
In fact, there are many more practical scenarios. Due to space limitations, I won't elaborate on each one. Let's discuss: do you see a promising future for signing?