Author: papajams.eth

Translated by: Deep Tide TechFlow

From the anonymous authors of The Federalist Papers laying the groundwork for democratic discourse, to whistleblowers exposing global injustices (like WikiLeaks), the practice of pseudonymity allows people to freely share thoughts and truths without fear of retaliation. Historically, figures such as Voltaire, Publius, Mark Twain (originally Samuel Clemens), George Eliot (originally Mary Ann Evans), and Satoshi Nakamoto have all advanced the dissemination of ideas through pseudonyms.

Zero Knowledge (ZK) Proofs

Zero Knowledge Proofs (ZKPs) are a revolutionary cryptographic technology that allows one party to prove to another that they possess certain information without disclosing the specific details. For example, you can prove that you meet the age requirement to enter a venue without revealing your full personal information on your ID. This technology ensures the confirmation of key facts (like age) while protecting other private data.

On traditional platforms, users typically need to submit personal data, which is centrally stored on servers, posing the risk of data breaches or misuse. Zero Knowledge Proofs change this model by allowing users to validate credentials or asset ownership without exposing personal information, significantly enhancing privacy protection.

Genesis

Sealcaster is the first zero-knowledge application built on the Farcaster protocol, developed by Big Whale Labs. Its development team includes Nikita Kolmogorov (borodutch), Jason Kim, and other members. They utilize Circom, a programming language specifically designed for zero-knowledge circuits, to generate proofs that allow users to authenticate without disclosing personal information. Through Circom's constraints and signaling mechanism, Sealcaster is able to verify the authenticity of its credentials while protecting user privacy.

Sealcaster is one of several zero-knowledge products launched by Big Whale Labs, with other products including:

  • SealCred: A platform that allows users to mint zk-NFTs based on NFT and email ownership.

  • SealCred Echo: A tool that allows users to anonymously publish content on Twitter with accompanying verification credentials.

  • Ketl: A tool providing pseudonymous communication for venture capitalists and entrepreneurs.

As one of the first practical zero-knowledge projects built on the Farcaster protocol, Sealcaster demonstrates the immense potential of privacy protection and verifiable communication on decentralized platforms.

Superanon

As the Farcaster community continues to grow, a high-level user client named supercast (developed by its founder woj, later renamed to super) gradually formed a user base and gave birth to superanon.

supercast is a currently paid client aimed at advanced users. It supports content publishing from multiple accounts and allows users to operate anonymously using superanon.

ANON

In the Farcaster community, the AI-driven Token launcher CLANKER has facilitated the creation of over 10,000 Tokens, with a total transaction volume reaching $1 billion, and has paid creators millions of dollars. One day, a superanon user anonymously created a Token named $ANON using CLANKER while sleeping in woj, embodying the characteristics of permissionless operation.

When woj woke up, he officially launched the $anon Token (with no capital letters) as a support tool for the superanon account, distributing donated $ANON to all supercast users via an airdrop.

Subsequently, developer slokh (who previously developed the nook client) built a platform called anoncast.org, allowing users to publish content anonymously while holding $ANON.

The platform combines Noir and Rust technologies, and its open-source code has attracted many developers for iteration and experimentation, opening up new possibilities for the future of anonymous social networks.

In addition to continuous feature updates and optimizations, such as allowing users to reveal later that they are the authors of popular content, Farcaster's features have attracted many well-known users, including Vitalik and Jesse Pollack. Notably, 0xLuo is the creator of the feature on the right.

33Bits

33bits.xyz is an experimental platform with usage limited to users with FID numbers below 20,000, which means early users of Farcaster. The tool was built by developers Kugusha and Sergey. To expand access, they later launched 66bits.xyz, which not only provided access to more users but also added extra features for token holders.

Rumours

Developed by Disky and Leovido, rumourcast.xyz is a client based on the Farcaster protocol. It is built on the popular Anon Cast, but incorporates some unique innovative designs.

(See here for details)

As long as users hold enough supporting tokens, they can publish content as an anonymous account. Future development plans include:

  • Frames V2 Integration: Enhancing user interaction experience by creating unique framing features.

  • NFT Minting: Supporting the minting of rumour content into collectible NFTs, potentially integrating with prediction market features to add more interactivity and value to the content.

  • Rumour AI Agent: Using AI technology to expand and optimize rumour content, adding more depth and creativity to each release.

The iteration of these features is ongoing, and the future looks promising.

Pseudonymous Economy

A complete shift towards a fully financialized pseudonymous framework may overlook the complexities of human social interaction. However, the true potential lies not in absolute anonymity, but in constructing diverse and complex identity models.

These online and on-chain social experiments provide users with a unique space. Here, individuals can build reputations, share insights, and collaborate without exposing their real identities, thereby alleviating the pressure of personal information exposure.

While a complete anonymous mode may struggle to support complex social or governance structures, these verified digital identity models offer new possibilities. These identities can be trusted, can be used across platforms, and protect personal privacy. They pave the way for establishing a voluntarily participative and flexibly flowing online social environment, redefining the power dynamics of online communication.

Through these tools, we can better find a delicate balance between transparency and privacy protection, collective trust and individual freedom.

“Behind this mask, there is not just flesh. Beneath the mask lies an idea... and ideas are bulletproof.” — Alan Moore, (V for Vendetta)