[ PROOFECONOMY ]™GlossaryOriginSpecsProof of X
Proof of X is the family of claims named "Proof of" something. Each one answers exactly one question, and only Proof of Efficacy answers whether the thing actually worked under real adversarial conditions, witnessed by someone other than the party making the claim.
What it means
“Proof of” is attached to almost anything: concept, work, stake, identity, reserves, compliance. The words sound alike, but each answers a different question, and most of them are produced by the same party whose claim they support.
The useful test for any “Proof of X” is two questions:
- What exact question does it answer?
- Who witnessed the answer? The party making the claim, or someone independent of it?
The taxonomy
| Proof of | The question it answers | Who usually witnesses it |
|---|---|---|
| Concept | Can the idea exist? | The builder |
| Capability | Can the system perform the function? | The vendor |
| Activity | Did the system do something? | The system’s own logs |
| Control | Did the control fire? | The control’s own logs |
| Compliance | Did it satisfy the stated requirement? | An auditor, from records the claimant controls |
| Identity | Is this the real person or agent? | The identity provider that ran the check |
| Work / Stake | Did a node spend resources to earn the right to write? | The network, by consensus |
| Reserves | Do the claimed assets exist? | Sometimes an independent attester |
| Efficacy | Did it produce the required outcome, under real conditions, at a standard good enough to matter? | An independent witness. Required. |
Why the order matters
Every row above Efficacy can be true while the product still fails. A control can fire (Proof of Control) while the attack succeeds. A signer can be correctly identified (Proof of Identity) while the transaction is fraudulent. An auditor can confirm compliance from records the vendor wrote.
When a “Proof of X” is produced, judged and stored by the party it describes, it is a Self-Attestation Oxymoron, whatever cryptography is attached to it.
What is not a Proof of X
“Proof of Everything” is not a thing. A proof that claims to answer every question answers none of them precisely enough to price, audit or insure. Each proof should name the one question it settles and the witness who settled it.
Related terms
- Proof of Control
- Proof of Efficacy
- Proof of Identity
- Security Effectiveness
- Self-Attestation Oxymoron (SAO)
- Validation
- Verification