# Zero knowledge proofs

`kaal:entity:zero-knowledge-proofs`

**Status.** derived

This node is assembled mechanically from the 6 claims that carry the concept tag `zero-knowledge-proofs`. It is a roster of what the corpus says under this term. It is **not** an adjudicated definition: no single statement here has been ruled canonical, and no first-appearance call has been made. Read the claims and judge for yourself.

## Every claim under this term

6 claims across 5 works, 2018 to 2025.

**2018**

- [3266953-037](https://wulfkaal.github.io/claims/3266953-037) [design/asserted] -- Semada's biometric onboarding technology uses zero knowledge proofs so that users retain continuing anonymity once they are onboarded.
  > Semada uses zero knowledge proofs for its biometrics onboarding technology that guarantees continuing anonymity for users, once onboarded.
  Craig Calcaterra, Wulf A. Kaal, Gopinath Sivalingam, Reputation Protocol for the Internet of Trust - Conceptual Whitepaper (2018). SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3266953

**2021**

- [3782201-039](https://wulfkaal.github.io/claims/3782201-039) [mechanism/argued] -- People participate more willingly with decentralized apps when their information remains under their personal control, and zero knowledge proofs make exactly that possible by allowing complex information to be shared for social improvement while personal information stays controlled.
  > People more willingly participate with decentralized apps, if their information remains under their personal control. ZK proofs allow people to do exactly that, sharing complex information for the purposes of social improvement, while maintaining control of their personal information.
  Craig Calcaterra, Wulf A. Kaal, Future of Decentralization (2021). SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3782201
- [3782214-036](https://wulfkaal.github.io/claims/3782214-036) [failure/argued] *(failure mode)* -- Equal distribution of output, where every member receives an equal share regardless of contribution, is impossible to maintain under current technology in a system with open access and privacy, because sockpuppet accounts would be abused.
  > This is impossible to maintain under the current technology with open access and privacy, since sockpuppet accounts would be abused. Improvements in ZK proofs and identity protocols, however, will soon make it possible to efficiently and securely com- bat such sockpuppet attacks.
  Craig Calcaterra, Wulf A. Kaal, Decentralized Governance (2021). SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3782214

**2025**

- [5454054-017](https://wulfkaal.github.io/claims/5454054-017) [failure/argued] *(failure mode)* -- Verification of off-chain equities held in brokerage accounts is a core implementation obstacle for LER, and before tokenized listings it required comparatively complex hybrid pipelines using off-chain attestations and zero-knowledge proofs.
  > As such, it addresses a core implementation challenge for LER, that is, the verification of off-chain equities held in brokerage accounts. Previously that verification required comparatively complex hybrid pipelines involving off-chain attestations and privacy-preserving technologies like ZKPs.
  Wulf A. Kaal, Liquid Equity Rewards (2025). SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=5454054
- [5454054-033](https://wulfkaal.github.io/claims/5454054-033) [design/argued] -- AML obligations for LER should be right-sized: zero-knowledge proofs or anonymized attestations should minimize identity collection for non-transferable rewards, with VASP-grade measures applied only where transferability exists.
  > LER should employ ZKPs or anonymized attestations to minimize identity collection for non-transferable rewards, applying VASP-grade measures only where transferability exists, balancing compliance with GDPR privacy obligations.
  Wulf A. Kaal, Liquid Equity Rewards (2025). SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=5454054
- [5886442-019](https://wulfkaal.github.io/claims/5886442-019) [mechanism/argued] *(failure mode)* -- Hidden action, that is moral hazard, and hidden information, that is adverse selection, are not merely reduced in the agentic economy but rendered computationally impossible at the substrate level, because every intermediate computation is attested on chain or through zero knowledge proofs.
  > Every intermediate computation is attested on-chain or via zero-knowledge proofs. Hidden action (moral hazard) and hidden information (adverse selection) are not merely reduced. They are rendered computationally impossible at the substrate level
  Wulf A. Kaal, The AI-to-AI Economy and the Collapse of Anthropocentric Economic Theory (2025). SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=5886442

## Verify

Every claim above resolves to a record carrying a verbatim source quote, the sha256 of the source PDF, and a preformatted citation. Nothing here asks to be taken on trust.

    curl -s https://wulfkaal.github.io/entities/zero-knowledge-proofs.md | sha256sum

**Canonical form.** This markdown file is the canonical hashed representation of this entity node. Its sha256 is the content hash.