A new project called The Humanity Protocol aims to challenge Worldcoin’s blockchain iris-based ID verification system with palm scanning
The Humanity Protocol runs on Polygon for scalability and security, making it inherently cheap and resistant to Sybil attacks
The Humanity Protocol’s Palm scans offer a non-invasive alternative to Worldcoin’s iris scan.
Worldcoin still faces criticism and bans for privacy concerns and potential security risks.
Overall, both of these projects are huge pioneers of the emerging ID verification field
Worldocin took the world by surprise when it launched, adding a whole new dimension to blockchain-based identity verification.
However, things have not been so smooth for WLD since launch, because of its (honestly invasive) means of identity verification.
Fast forward to a few months after Worldcoin’s launch, and the project is already being banned, sanctioned or investigated in several countries worldwide.
To address these issues, the Human Institute and Animoca Brands have collaborated on a new project that aims to challenge the dominance of WLD in the field of identity verification.
Here’s everything you need to know
According to details in a recent press release, the Animoca-backed project is called the “Humanity Protocol.” It uses palm recognition instead of iris scanning to do exactly what Worldcoin does with its orbs.
Instead of scanning the irises of users, the Humanity protocol simply requires a palm print and is likely to become more popular than WLD soon.
Here are all the ways The Humanity Protocol is similar—or different from Worldcoin:
To begin with, while Worldcoin runs on its own blockchain, the Humanity Protocol runs on Polygon.
Now, Polygon is arguably one of the most popular Ethereum L2 solutions out there.
It is cheap, easy to use and leverages Ethereum’s security, which means that it is resistant to Sybil attacks, where a single user attempts to create multiple identities to span/manipulate the system.
The Humanity Protocol uses a “Proof of Humanity” consensus mechanism that makes sure that identities are valid, without compromising any of their personal information.
All that user has to do is to scan their palms with a smartphone camera, and get assigned a cryptographic key that is linked to their identity.
This is a much better alternative to Worldcoin’s iris scanning, in which anything from health to genetics and even ancestry can potentially get exposed.
The Humanity Project, according to the press release, is currently in the testnet phase and will soon invite users to join its network.
Worldcoin hasn’t had it easy so far.
The protocol’s executives have claimed that the protocol is secure and anonymous, but critics like pro-XRP lawyer, John Deaton aren’t having it.
Deaton, in a recent tweet, mentioned that “If there was ever a signal to RUN AWAY as fast as you can from a project, HERE IT IS.”
Others like crypto researcher, Chris Blec have also fired at Worldcoin:
Arguments against Worldcoin
Vitalik Buterin, the co-founder of Ethereum even warned in a recent blog post, that the iris-scanning hardware could have backdoors that could leak or steal users’ data.
Furthermore, hackers could also trick people into linking their codes with someone else’s iris scan, thereby creating false identities and doing whatever they wanted with them.
Moreover, Worldcoin continues to face several regulatory challenges in several countries.
In Kenya and Germany for example, Worldcoin is currently banned. In India, the Worldcoin project was suspended because of overcrowding and chaos at the iris-scanning sites.
Overall, the incoming rivalry between Worldcoin and The Humanity Protocol, Worldcoin is a healthy one that shows innovation in the digital identity field. Both of these projects, despite having different approaches, aim to deliver the same things, in terms of financial inclusion, voting rights and social welfare
As the digital identity space evolves, users will have to weigh the advantages (or lack thereof) of each and decide which to go for.
Overall, the digital identity niche is set to have a massive impact on the quality of identity verification, and the future of human society.
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