Petname

This article is about the security-enhancing software naming systems. For the shorter or diminutive form of a word or given name, see Hypocorism. For names of pet animals, see Personal name § Non-human personal names.

Petname systems are naming systems that claim to possess all three naming properties of Zooko's triangle - global, secure, and memorable.^[1] Software that uses such a system can satisfy all three requirements. Such systems can be used to enhance security, such as preventing phishing attacks.^[2] Unlike traditional identity systems, which focus on the service provider, Petname systems are decentralized and designed to facilitate the needs of the enduser as they interact with multiple services.^[3][4]

History

Though the Petname model was formally described in 2005 by Mark Stiegler, the potential of the system was discovered by several people successively.^[3]

Examples

• The GNU Name System (GNS) – a decentralized alternative to DNS based on the principle of a petname system^[5]
• CapDesk – a distributed desktop environment^[6]
• Petname Tool (discontinued browser extension) – There was a browser extension available for Firefox called Petname Tool that allowed pet names to be assigned to secure websites. Use of this extension could help prevent phishing attacks.^[7]

PetName Markup Language

The PetName Markup Language (PNML) is a proposal for embedding Petname information into other systems using a custom markup language.^[4]

PNML consists of two tags:

• <pn>pet-name-string</pn>
• <key>stringified-cryptographic-key</key>