On Phone Numbers and Identity
In a way, this seems like an at-speed version of the Social Security Number&#x27;s slow-motion train wreck: just as SSNs are not secret (and in many cases are actually pretty easily guessable), so too possession of a phone number is too-easily changed.<p>We need a good solution to identity.  Right now most web services use &#x27;has control of an email account,&#x27; while some others — to include email services — use &#x27;has control of a phone number.&#x27;<p>I don&#x27;t trust governments in general, so &#x27;is vouched for by a state&#x27; doesn&#x27;t really work either, although for many institutions (e.g. banks) that&#x27;s probably good enough (if a government wishes to confiscate one&#x27;s funds, it will do that, rather than create a fake driver&#x27;s license and hand it to someone to clean one&#x27;s accounts out).<p>Perhaps some sort of social identity is possible?  &#x27;Charles is vouched for by Alice, Bob, Dave and Frank&#x27; might work, although there&#x27;s the issue that someone has to vouch for each of Alice, Bob, Dave and Frank — there&#x27;s a Sybil attack where someone, or a group of real people operating together, could create false identities.<p>For my own accounts though, if I nominate two persons I work with, four persons I go to church with, four more in my family and three friends then I&#x27;d feel pretty good if nine of those were allowed to vouch for my email.  I <i>think</i>.