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Experiences with Blockstack Testnet neon

Tags: Auth Service, blockchain, development.  Date: June 3, 2020

Blockstack, the blockchain solution with which we integrated our Auth Service product, has launched a series of testnet phases in advance of release of the 2.0 version of their blockchain. The first testnet was code named "neon" (the next is argon, named after noble gases). The phase for neon ended June 3, 2020. On our CEOs website this article runs through several pieces of the testnet that we participated in: setting up a node, setting up a miner and writing some code in Clarity, the smart contract language for this blockchain.

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Non-Repudiation Patent

Tags: crytography. Original date: December 20, 2011

Media Sourcery's patent, which is active as of December 20, 2011, covers a "System and Method for Non-Repudation Within a Public-Key Infrastructure."

Embodiments of the disclosure provide systems, methods, and computer readable instructions for non-repudiation communictions, including provisions for non-repudiation of the identities of the send and receiver, non-repudiation of the information sent and the information received, the time that various portions of the transaction or communication occurred, and other parameters associated therewith. Embodiments of the disclosure can be readily implemented in conjunction with public key systems to advantageously provide complete non-repudiation or origin and delivery of digital data.

All 24 pages of it can be read in a PDF here.

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Publishing, Reputation and the Blockchain

Tags: blockchain. Original Date: August 12, 2018

This article from August 2018 on our CEO's web site is relevant to the article above concerning Media Sourcery's Auth Service V3 release and integration with Blockstack. It also begins the examination of publishing as a workflow made up of tasks that could be automated on the blockchain.

There are many levels of trust that we use today without measurement, through email or text or other non-blockchain communications:

  • Two parties do not know each other. Often this is called spam.
  • One party knows someone who knows the other party
  • One way communication has been exchanged in the past
  • Two way communication has occurred
  • Enough communication has occurred that there is trust
  • One of the parties has demonstrated knowledge in a subject sufficient for the second party to name the first party a “trusted source”

With blockchain, the transactions are designed to remove the need for trust. With public key/private key exchanges, neither party needs to know the other – they just need each other’s public keys.

This anonymous trust works if you are exchanging tokens. But if you are using public ledgers for “proof of publication”, the type of trust a user might look for is different. It is more about reputation. And the need to check reputation stems from two areas: determining a trusted source, and determining a proof of non-plagurism.

Read the full article on our CEO's web site.

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An Overview of Cryptography

Tags: cryptography

When the initial Media Sourcery website first linked to Gary C. Kessler's wonderful overview of cryptography, it was a single white paper. Recently updated, it is one of the most comprehensive technical resources on cryptograhy available on line.

There are many aspects to security and many applications, ranging from secure commerce and payments to private communications and protecting health care information. One essential aspect for secure communications is that of cryptography. But it is important to note that while cryptography is necessary for secure communications, it is not by itself sufficient. The reader is advised, then, that the topics covered here only describe the first of many steps necessary for better security in any number of situations.

The entire set of entries with table of contents can be found here.

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Content Publishing and Compensation for Non-Profits using Blockchain Solutions

Tags: blockchain. Original date: August 10, 2019

This article from August 2019 on our CEO's web site examines existing methods for compensating publishers, and how non-profits, who have published much content, could augment their publishing processes to participate.

The goal of this article is to merge two seemingly disparate areas – non-profit organizations and blockchain technologies – to the benefit of both. Non-profit organizations are in constant need of more members and more funding. Blockchain solutions are in need of users, to use solutions that have already been validated, and to validate others.

Read the full article on our CEO's web site.

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