distributed trust model [English]

Syndetic Relationships

InterPARES Definition

n. ~ A framework that relies on multiple, independent authorities in a communities of users that is independent of a single arbiter.

Other Definitions

Citations

  • Casey 2016 (†877 ): We finally have the conceptual framework for [a distributed rust management system], one in which trust need no longer be invested in a third-party intermediary but managed in a distributed manner across a community of users incentivized to protect a public good. Blockchain technology and the spinoff ideas it has spawned provide us with the best chance yet to solve the age-old problem of the Tragedy of the Commons. This technology creates a mechanism by which people and institutions that would not otherwise trust each other can agree, in a constantly updated process, on a common record of events. (†2629)
  • Sinn 2015 (†876 p. 121): The strict hierarchy model is not appropriate for every environment . . . For an organization with many end entities disbursed geographically, or with end entities spread among different organizations or Internet users, one single strict hierarchy tree is probably impossible to establish. Instead of trusting a single root trust anchor, the distributed trust model distributes trust among two or more trust anchors. (†2627)
  • Stubbs and Ankeemana 2016 (†773 ): This distributed-trust model overcomes the key problems with the central arbiter. The bribery and corruption risks are addressed by distributing the transaction approval authority among the quorum. Mistakes and outright fraud are prevented by transactions being validated and approved by the group before being committed to the book and copies of the book accessible to all parties at all times. Removing the central authority also removes their ability to charge monopoly fees for their services, making cow trading more efficient. Finally, this model improves convenience as trades can take place at a time convenient to the buyer and seller, without being reliant on the keeper of the ‘central book of cows’ being awake and available. ¶ In this system, trustworthiness is independent of any single one of the participants. In fact, the system continues to work even when everyone actively distrusts each other! (†1953)