[shrink]

I built handles.net[1] to make it easy for organisations to manage their member's handles, I think that using domain names for identity is neat and valuable, I have a vested interest in its success as a paradigm but... domain name "verification" is not the right solution today for non-technical people. I shared this sentiment a few months ago[2] and I have only become more confident in that assessment since.

The approach they've taken ("trusted verifiers") is an approach aligned with their values, as it is an extension of the labelling concept that is already well established in the ecosystem. As an idealist, it is a shame that they gave up, I think they could have had an impact on shifting how non-technical people view domain names and understand digital identity... but as a pragmatist, this is the right choice. Bluesky has to pick their battles, and this isn't a hill to die on.

[1] https://handles.net [2] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=42749786

[yellowapple]

> The approach they've taken ("trusted verifiers") is an approach aligned with their values, as it is an extension of the labelling concept that is already well established in the ecosystem.

That just leaves me wondering why they bothered with a new separate system instead of just using the existing label system. A "verified by bsky.social" or "verified by nyt.com" or whatever label would do the job perfectly well, no?

[steveklabnik]

I would have liked to have seen a justification for this as well. One thing about labels is that they can apply on a per-post granularity as well as a per-account granularity, but verification is purely account-level. Another is that they have slightly different semantics, you can lose your blue check if you change your handle or display name, but labels stay the same no matter what. That's probably the real justification for making it its own feature.

[adityavinodh]

Yeah my initial reaction was not too positive. There's something weird to me about simply delegating verification to a third party organization. I'd prefer a more pure solution. Maybe we don't have a solution yet that is simple enough for widespread adoption. The domain based identity does seem a bit too complicated for the average user.

[Retr0id]

> it is a shame that they gave up

They didn't really give up, though - the domain verification still stands and is just as powerful as ever.