At Helixstreet, we recognize the growing challenge of distinguishing genuine human users from bots and Sybil attacks online. Proof of Personhood (PoP) aims to address this by verifying that a digital account corresponds to one unique human, essential for fair and authentic digital ecosystems. PoP seeks Sybil resistance (one person, one identity) while ideally preserving user privacy. Current methods range from biometrics to social graphs and cognitive tests.
Our exploration delves into the highly speculative use of DNA sequencing data, specifically in a first phase Variant Call Format (VCF) files, as a basis for PoP. We are investigating the theoretical possibility of implementing such a system on the Polkadot network , potentially leveraging its upcoming Join-Accumulate Machine (JAM) upgrade and the privacy-preserving power of Zero-Knowledge Proofs (ZKPs).