Quantifying and qualifying trust: spectral decomposition of trust networks

  • Authors:
  • Dusko Pavlovic

  • Affiliations:
  • Universities of Oxford and Twente

  • Venue:
  • FAST'10 Proceedings of the 7th International conference on Formal aspects of security and trust
  • Year:
  • 2010

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Abstract

In a previous FAST paper, I presented a quantitative model of the process of trust building, and showed that trust is accumulated like wealth: the rich get richer. This explained the pervasive phenomenon of adverse selection of trust certificates, as well as the fragility of trust networks in general. But a simple explanation does not always suggest a simple solution. It turns out that it is impossible to alter the fragile distribution of trust without sacrificing some of its fundamental functions. A solution for the vulnerability of trust must thus be sought elsewhere, without tampering with its distribution. This observation was the starting point of the present paper. It explores different methods for securing trust: not by redistributing, but by qualifying it. The methods used to break privacy can be used to secure trust.