Since usernames are only unique to the instance it’s created on, what’s to stop someone from creating a copycat username in order to impersonate another user?

  • dhork@lemmy.worldEnglish
    6·
    3 years ago

    Nothing, really. Each instance is unique. Technically speaking, users will the same name on different instances are unique. You can always spin up your own instance and get whatever name you want. So it’s natural to want to register a username in multiple instances, to avoid confusion. Eventually there will have to be some way to tie identities across instances. Like a GPG key that can be validated on all accounts belonging to the same person.

    I think this is ultimately where Meta is going with their Fediverse stuff. They will operate as a low-key ID verification service. Instances are saying they won’t federate with Threads right now, but as shitty as Meta and Instagram are they can guarantee that a Threads user is the same entity as an Intstagram user, which is currently more ID verification than exists right now in the Fediverse. Some instances may open themselves up to Threads in order to gain access to their userbase.

  • SuperFola@programming.devEnglish
    5·
    3 years ago

    Nothing, but keep in mind that maybe 95% or even 99% of the fediverse users are a bunch of nobodies. To have a stalker or someone trying to impersonate you, you would have to be extremely lucky (or unlucky)

  • kukkurovaca@lemmy.blahaj.zoneEnglish
    2·
    3 years ago

    As others have said, nothing.

    Mastodon has a sort of lightweight verification which just signifies that you are to some degree in control of the URLs linked to in your profile. So for example, if you have your own domain or something that people associate with you, then you can use that in your profile to show that it’s you. Of course, that depends on that domain meaning something to the end user, and the end user being savvy enough to, for example, know that someone could get the .com version of your .net domain, etc. etc.