The Case for Portable Identity on the Open Web
Every platform walls your identity inside its garden. TIP is our answer: an open standard for reader identity that no single company can control.
The Problem
You have:
- A Reddit account with 50K karma
- A Hacker News account with 8K karma
- A Stack Overflow account with 25K reputation
- A Disqus profile on 15 blogs
None of these travel with you. When you find a new community, you start from zero. Your reputation is locked inside platforms you don't control.
What Portable Identity Means
Portable identity means:
- You own your identity - Not the platform
- Your reputation travels - From site to site
- You control visibility - Choose what's public vs private
- No vendor lock-in - Export and leave anytime
How TIP Works
TIP (Threadline Identity Protocol) is a specification, not a product. It defines:
- TIP_Identity - Your profile, reputation score, and privacy settings
- Reputation Algorithm - How reputation is calculated (transparent, auditable)
- Privacy Layer - Session hashing, consent management, cross-site visibility controls
Any site can implement TIP. When you visit a TIP-enabled site, your identity and reputation are available - if you want them to be.
Why Now?
The web is at an inflection point:
- Users are tired of creating accounts - Password fatigue is real
- GDPR/privacy regulations - Require user control over data
- Platform fatigue - People want to own their digital presence
- Web standards are maturing - Web Crypto, Shadow DOM, JWT make this possible
The Open Web Vision
Imagine a web where:
- You sign in once, anywhere
- Your reputation precedes you (with your consent)
- Platforms compete on quality, not lock-in
- Your data is yours, always
This is the web TIP is designed for.
Get Involved
TIP is Apache 2.0 licensed. The specification is open for comment. Reference implementations exist in TypeScript, Python, and Go.
If you believe in the open web, we'd love your contribution.