What is an Attestation

When you need to confirm the accuracy of a fact or claim, you can create an attestation with Linear Attest using the V0 standard on Optimism and send it on chain. These statements get secured by the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) and are part of a person's digital identity. One party signs them cryptographically to verify specific information about another party.

For instance, an attestation may confirm a person's genuine digital identity, possessing certain qualifications or credentials, or compliance with specific criteria. Decentralized identity systems often use attestations to build trust among participants using unique identifiers without relying on centralized entities to maintain trust.

A unique digital signature and recording of attestations on a blockchain like Ethereum guarantee a secure, transparent, and tamper-proof method of sharing and verifying information.

How to Attest

To create an attestation, follow these steps:

• Determine the attributes: Before creating an attestation, you must determine its attributes, which include
  • Creator: The address that will write the attestation and put it on the chain.
  • Key: A 32-byte value that uniquely identifies the attestation. The key can be a short ASCII string, a hash value of a longer string, or any other suitable identifier. Note that different creators can use the same key for distinct purposes.
  • Value: A byte string that can get interpreted in various ways, such as ASCII, a number, or another format.
• Reasoning: The meaning of the attestation depends on the creator's intention, and storing this information on a blockchain is not required.
• Create the attestation: Navigate to the 'Create an Attestation' tab to create and sign the attestation with your wallet.
• Submit the attestation: After creating and signing an attestation, submit it to the network. The attestation will then be recorded in a block, making it secure, transparent, and tamper-proof.
• Share and verify: Share the attestation with relevant parties who can use it to verify the information you've attested to. As the attestation gets stored on the Optimism chain, others can easily verify its authenticity and integrity.

Remember that interpreting an attestation is up to the creator and may require additional off-chain information to understand its meaning or purpose fully.

How to Read

To read an attestation, follow these simplified steps:

• Gather information: Obtain the creator address (who made the attestation), the subject address (who the attestation is about), and the key (a unique identifier for the attestation).
  Hint: Find the transaction of the attestation, and the details are included.
• Access the attestation: Navigate to the 'Read an Attestation' tab to access the attestation you're interested in, providing the necessary details.
• Interpret the attestation: Understand that the meaning of the attestation relies on the creator's intent, and it may require additional off-chain data to understand.

Remember that interpreting an attestation depends on the creator's intention and may require further off-chain information to understand its meaning or purpose entirely. Using Optimistic Etherscan, you'll find the details at the bottom of the transaction if you decode them.

Here is an example of an attestation's details: