Web 3.0 Security: Four Key Issues That Concern the Tech Community
The tech community is actively discussing Web 3.0, the new version of the Internet. Although the concept of a modernized network is more or less clear, there is still no lucid algorithm for a large-scale reform of the digital environment. Cornell University professor James Grimmelmann says Web 3.0 will fix everything people don’t like about the current web, even if it’s controversial. And while the evolution of the Internet has great prospects, it does not rule out serious Web 3.0 security issues. Let’s take a look at four bottlenecks in next-generation Internet cyber security.
Web 3.0: a beautiful theory or a real thing?
The evolution of the Internet has been gradual. The good old Web 1.0 was based on static pages with links. Users did not have the opportunity to register on sites, interact with pages, and add information on their own. The first version was like a worldwide digital library, where you could only read information uploaded by site administrators.
The transition to the next Internet version, Web 2.0, took place in the early 2000s when social networks and YouTube emerged. Each user got the opportunity to share data online in posts, forums, communities, or videos. People began to entrust the web with their personal and banking data to create accounts, register on target sites, and pay for goods and services online.
Users were comfortable with this order of things until the shortcomings of Web 2.0 became clear. The first one is related to the risk of hacking and theft of confidential data because the amount of compromised information is growing from year to year. Therefore, approximately 70% of Internet users seek to increase their privacy in the digital world.
The second drawback is related to the excessive power of server owners. A user account is blocked if someone’s opinion is contrary to the policy of an organization. Web 2.0, like its predecessor, is based on a client-server architecture, where servers are centrally managed by their owners (organizations or individuals). Accordingly, users don’t want to risk their accounts and lose uploaded data in the twinkling of an eye.
According to tech enthusiasts, Web 3.0, or the Internet of blockchains, can smooth out the flaws of its predecessor. Centralized servers are expected to be replaced by a decentralized database distributed over computer nodes. Anyone can own a node, so monopolistic companies will not be able to delete content or user accounts. Information will be simultaneously stored on thousands of computers, without the possibility of deleting, stealing, or forging it.
Also, Web 3.0 supporters suggest that in the new version of the Internet, any content can be tokenized. Owners will assign rights to photos, videos, texts, or audio files uploaded to the network and will be able to sell them for digital currency. The movement in the Metaverse will take place thanks to the digital identity assigned to a person. It is enough to register on any platform once and then freely move between decentralized applications (dApps).
What’s wrong with Web 3.0?
Despite the bright future and the first trials of Web 3.0 (blockchain browsers Brave and Opera Reborn 3), the transition to the new version is a laborious and long process. The tech community needs to rethink the full stack of the Internet. IT professionals need to consider migration from the standard HTTP data exchange protocol to documents that regulate a decentralized environment. They must modernize company and project management schemes based on DAO. This is a huge mechanism, and the entire economy and life of the planet are built on it. In addition, cyber security specialists are concerned about the issue of security. Industry experts talk about four key issues that need to be addressed.
Issue 1. Reliability of information
Since everything is decentralized in Web 3.0, experts have doubts about the authenticity and originality of information. The following questions remain unanswered: “How will the mechanism for checking security and accuracy work?”, “Who will confirm the validity of data?”, “How to calculate and prevent data manipulation?”. These issues still cause controversy. The sooner a solution to these problems is found, the sooner we will come to Web 3.0.
Issue 2. Data availability
The over-dependence of users on data in Web 3.0 is also puzzling. It is difficult to predict how the built systems will behave and what will happen to the processes if the data in them suddenly becomes unavailable. Experts argue what will happen to the whole network if one or two nodes fall out.
Issue 3. Data security
Even though blockchain is considered one of the most secure technologies (records added to blocks are securely encrypted), it also has its issues. 51% attacks, Sybil attacks, phishing attacks, and theft of a user’s key — hackers have found vulnerabilities in such a seemingly solid system.
Since Web 3.0 is built on blockchain, cyber security experts have to come up with a mechanism to close loopholes for hackers and block data leakage. If attackers manage to steal a digital asset, it will be almost impossible to get it back. Indeed, in a decentralized network, it is difficult to track transaction paths.
Wallet cloning is a common Web 3.0 security issue. If a hacker manages to get a user’s passphrase, they can make a copy of the wallet and use it to pay for services.
Issue 4. User authentication and signature
Most dApps do not authenticate or sign responses to requests. That is, when a user’s digital wallet receives data from such apps, it is impossible to verify that the response is sent by a real app and that the data is not fake. Therefore, developers should initially consider how to ensure basic user security. They must develop effective mechanisms for finding and preventing risks.
Conclusion: rethinking security in the age of the Metaverse
Web 3.0 challenges old models of networking. The new Internet of blockchains addresses the vital issues of its predecessor related to privacy and the risk of data loss. However, it does not exclude the emergence of new security holes related to smart contract hacks or the lack of legal documents to protect users of a blockchain network.
The distributed nature of the Internet may make it more difficult to detect and prevent cybercrime, misinformation, or spam. It is difficult to imagine how to regulate the activity of a blockchain-based site in different parts of the world, with different laws.
Regulators, businesses, and web users need to understand how Web 3.0 will protect their privacy to embrace the coming changes and seamlessly interact with others in the digital world.
