👁 What is ZK?

⚫️ Recently, Vitalik Buterin published a post about the shortcomings of ZK-based identity systems. While there are currently no such projects in TON, the zero-knowledge (ZK) approach is already being applied in the TONNEL project. So in our #howtoton column, let’s break it down: what is ZK, and what does it offer users?

⚫️ There’s a common issue: when someone needs to prove something about themselves, they often have to share more information than necessary. For example, if someone wants to buy alcohol and shows their ID to prove they’re of legal age, the seller can also see their name, birthday, and more.

⚫️ Many people don’t want to share personal information, and it would be ideal if a system could help avoid that. Imagine a scenario where a buyer could simply prove to the seller, “I’m of legal age,” without showing a passport or even revealing their exact age.

⚫️ In the crypto world, privacy is especially valued — and that’s where these kinds of systems have emerged. They’re based on zero-knowledge proofs, which allow one party to prove a fact to another without revealing any information other than the fact itself.

⚫️ One application of ZK is for making transactions more private. In a blockchain explorer, you can see which addresses sent funds to which others. But with zero-knowledge proofs, it’s possible to “obscure the trail” by mixing addresses. In Ethereum, this was implemented by the Tornado Cash project; in TON, it’s being done by TONNEL. However, many governments argue that anonymization hinders criminal investigations, and as a result, the creators of Tornado Cash faced criminal prosecution.

💡 But ZK isn’t just for anonymizing transactions. It also has other use cases — like the identity systems mentioned earlier, which function like a “passport you don’t need to take out.” These projects haven’t gone mainstream yet, but development is ongoing. One of the most high-profile examples is Worldcoin, backed by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. This space is worth keeping an eye on, and we’ll be diving deeper into it in the future.

@thedailyton