It Was A Choice #2: Person's name is the identity :: Tom J.

It Was A Choice #2: Person's name is the identity

Tom J. • Aug 21, 2026

We have email, or nicknames previously, as an identity verification.<br>But what happens in account creation process or a registration when your first and last name it the identity?

We are

remaking anonline publication, smaller, local, but with such a history I remember that magazine in paper form on my grandma's coffee table.<br>They chose their printed magazine subscription partner

to also hold their users and

new subscriptions.<br>(Can't share details, the project's not out yet)<br>The registration

process<br>So, when user registeres, it goes to our server and from there, we send request to the partner's servers. We have ZERO control there.<br>Which that alone I don't like.<br>We started to receive previous registration attemps as existing users. That's strange, right? We are of course testing different email addresses, even different phone numbers.<br>I contacted their IT. The respons: "You keep sending 'test test' as a name, so we connect it to existing 'test test' customer and add the new contacts to them.".<br>That's scary! Security, privacy scary.<br>There is a way to be a little safer. Like asking for existing customer first, then registering.<br>But it doesn't solve all the John Doe s.<br>What's the problem exactly<br>First is - you never trust someone connecting to you API! If we were dumb or just an error, a mistake happens, we can very easily place a very different contact to a customer and the partner may send my invoice to a stranger's email. Huge privacy issue.<br>Second, there are so many people with the same name. By taking names as identifications, the only identifications as it turned out, they literally prevent multiple people with the same name creating an account.<br>Now I have strong doubts about security of the users and voiced it to our client.

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Tom J.founder of LINK-V

I am building a company to challenge big tech and modern tech practices. I call it Grace - software that is private, secure, fast and permanent. Data that belong to you.<br>I dislike subscriptions being the only option. Regression that is being called "an innovation".

I offer software development and products through LINK-V. Everything is built on those principles - all products and client products. Beside software itself, I speak well to developers and clients.

Building tech to make our lives better. For real innovation.

tom@link-v.pro

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