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Over 20 Blockchain Projects Unite to Launch “DeCC Alliance” to Raise Awareness on Data Protection Technologies and Confidential Computing
Over 20 different blockchain networks have joined together to form a coalition to raise awareness of the critical aspects of privacy-focused technologies that enable data protection and private computing. In an effort to educate the public, the DeCC Alliance is proposing the recognition of a new category for a growing Web3 technology, Decentralized Confidential Computing (DeCC) to help distinguish between projects broadly classified as “privacy coins” or “privacy chains” from those that enable arbitrary decentralized computations, such as smart contracts or off-chain AI workers, without exposing user data. The coalition includes over 20 members including Acurast, Aleo, Arcium Automata, Fairblock, Fhenix, iExec, Inco, Integritee, Intmax, Marlin, Mind Network, Oasis, Partisia, Phala, Secret Network, Swisstronik, TEN, Ternoa, and Zama. DeCC aims to educate the public about the powerful capabilities of Decentralized Confidential Computing and proposes the acronym DeCC to distinguish it.
In recent years, data protection and the confidential execution of smart contracts have evolved far beyond the label of “privacy coin” or “privacy chain.” There is a clear need to distinguish between projects that focus on transactional privacy and those that focus on confidential and encrypted computing. DeCC projects offer the ability to create smart contracts with encrypted data, perform arbitrary computations on-chain and off-chain with confidentiality, and store sensitive information on a blockchain, much more powerful than simply sending a token privately.
In early 2024, several projects came together and proposed the need to work to raise awareness and improve public knowledge of the technologies that enable Confidential Computing. The group first met at ETH Denver and has since evolved into a broader coalition with full alignment of interests.
After several weeks of open discussion, the group moved to a formal vote, which was conducted on April 4, 2024. Following overwhelming consensus, the term DeCC (Decentralized Confidential Computing) was finalized as the umbrella category name for all projects operating in the space. DeCC encompasses several types of encryption technologies and solutions aimed at improving data protection, secure and confidential computations, verifiable processing, and more. Some of the technologies used by companies in the space include TEE (Trusted Execution Environment), ZKP (Zero-Knowledge Proofs), MPC (Multi-Party Computation), and FHE (Fully Homomorphic Encryption). The key is that they enable data to be processed in a confidential and fully decentralized manner.
The dynamic DeCC Alliance plans to raise awareness through “DeCC Day” at key industry events around the world. The first such event was conducted at NFT.NYCfollowed by Consensus in Austin. The DeCC Alliance is set to participate in upcoming events at ETHCC Brussels and Futurist Toronto. With a strong emphasis on public awareness and education, the group is expected to include DeCC Day at Token2049 and DevCon, among others.
Many DeCC projects share the general goal of making blockchains more business-friendly by ensuring confidentiality and protection of sensitive or proprietary data. In contrast, most major blockchain networks today are radically transparent, making mainstream adoption difficult.
Quotes from DeCC Alliance Members
Arcium: “On-chain data privacy is a complex challenge for public blockchains, hindering broader adoption of decentralized and permissionless systems. Many solutions have faced significant trade-offs between privacy, centralized trust, and performance. At Arcium, we aim to make DeCC flexible and fast, delivering this essential element at scale. We are excited to collaborate with some of the brightest minds to make this a reality.”
TEN: “For the first time in Ethereum’s history, we now have practical and simple solutions for privacy. No new languages for developers to learn. No new tools required. The work being done by the DeCC projects will set a new standard for Web3 applications,” said Gavin Thomas, co-founder of Obscuro Labs and a TEN contributor. “The TEN team, like the other DeCC projects, has worked tirelessly to bring this innovation to life, and we are excited to see how it will empower both developers and users.”
Acurast: “Centralized trust is ubiquitous in today’s interconnected world, from computational resources to data storage and its underlying infrastructure. Large-scale data leaks and breaches have exposed these implicit assumptions of trust and highlighted the need to evolve towards a permissionless, confidential, and universally decentralized cloud future, powered by blockchains. One of the key challenges facing blockchains today is the effectiveness and confidentiality of the execution layer, and DeCC is the solution to this.”
Aleph Zero: “One of the biggest challenges Web3 faces today is data privacy. On-chain privacy is not yet widely adopted, because the available solutions are mostly complex to use and isolated from the broader Web3 ecosystem. Aleph Zero is working to solve this problem and we firmly believe that DeCC is essential for the future of Web3.”
Execution: “In many current Web3 platforms, we still encounter centralized control points that manage critical functions, such as who can access what data and how transactions are approved. Privacy-enhancing technologies like Intel SGX used for DeCC by iExec can allow users to retain full ownership of their data by encrypting it, giving them full control over how dApps can use it.”
Oasis: “Privacy is a polarizing topic in Web3. Since full transparency is a highly valued feature of the ecosystem, anything related to privacy or data protection is often casually lumped together with any other privacy-adjacent project. The label “privacy currency” is applied liberally. However, casual categorizations are not helpful, and distinguishing user-centric data protection networks, or “DeCC” networks, from “privacy” currencies used for unilateral asset transfers is important. Protocols like the Oasis Network play a key role in balancing productive privacy with selective transparency for a more secure Web3.”
Secret Network: “Ethereum changed the world when it introduced the concept of smart contracts running on a blockchain. This enabled not only decentralized payment systems like Bitcoin, but also decentralized computing applications. However, since then, most blockchain technology has required all data to be completely transparent and public. While this is fine for some applications, for others it is a huge limitation. DeCC solves this problem, unlocking new possibilities for Web3 by allowing smart contracts to use encrypted data, paving the way for mainstream adoption. Secret Network aims to bring DeCC to all of Web3.”
Swisstronic: “Most Web3 product creators find it difficult and expensive to keep up with the ever-changing and fragmented crypto regulations. They are also forced to choose between user privacy and decentralization and compliance. App users also have a difficult choice to make. They must either trust centralized parties and risk their personal data while passing identity checks; or remain in the gray area of the crypto industry, full of fraudsters and numerous risks. Swisstronik solves this problem with DeCC, providing a set of tools that strike a balance between user privacy, regulatory compliance, and decentralization.”
Ternoa: “Ternoa is a multi-network, cross-layer protocol that leverages DeCC technologies to make blockchain more secure, private, and scalable. Our technology stack combines distributed ledger and confidential processing technologies to provide a decentralized yet private development environment for next-generation applications.”