HTMLTrust

About HTMLTrust

Mon, 12 May 2025 00:00:00 +0000

What Is HTMLTrust?

HTMLTrust is a decentralized, standards-aligned framework for embedding cryptographic trust directly into HTML content. Using a proposed <signed-section> element, content creators and publishing platforms can sign semantically meaningful regions of web pages and include identity-linked metadata in-band.

Signatures are validated using public key infrastructure (PKI) such as DIDs, and can be enhanced with third-party endorsements submitted to optional, federated trust directories.

Unlike blockchain-based or DRM-centric systems, HTMLTrust is lightweight, browser-compatible, and web-native — designed to scale across publishing workflows, civic media, and knowledge networks.

Frequently Asked Questions

Mon, 12 May 2025 00:00:00 +0000

What is HTMLTrust?

HTMLTrust is a decentralized framework for embedding cryptographic trust directly into HTML content. It enables content creators to sign semantically meaningful regions of web pages and include identity-linked metadata, so browsers and other tools can verify authorship and content integrity.

How is HTMLTrust different from existing solutions?

Unlike blockchain-based or DRM-centric systems, HTMLTrust is:

Lightweight — minimal impact on page performance
Browser-compatible — works with standard web technologies
Web-native — designed around HTML, not bolted on
Decentralized — no central authority required
User-configurable — supports personal trust policies

Existing methods like DKIM and PGP provide digital signatures, and ISCC provides content fingerprinting, but none integrate cleanly with web-native publishing or browser-based verification at the content-block level.

System Architecture

Mon, 12 May 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Overview

HTMLTrust is a system for decentralized content authenticity, authorship claims, and endorsement. It defines a method for authors to sign content blocks in HTML, supported by canonicalization rules and cryptographic integrity checks, along with an endorsement and discovery model via public trust directories.

Signed HTML Blocks

A proposed new tag, <signed-section>, encapsulates a signed region of a page. This tag includes:

Canonicalized content — e.g., a blog post or paragraph
Metadata — author identity (e.g., via DID), timestamp, content hash
Signature — Base64-encoded digital signature of content + metadata

<signed-section keyid="did:web:author.example"
 signature="BASE64_SIG" algorithm="ed25519"
 content-hash="sha256:abc123...">
 <meta name="author" content="Alice Example">
 <meta name="claim:ContentType" content="Article">
 <article>
 <h1>Verifiable Web Content</h1>
 <p>Content should be provable...</p>
 </article>
</signed-section>

Canonicalization

To ensure consistent signing and verification, content is canonicalized before hashing:

Use Cases

Mon, 12 May 2025 00:00:00 +0000

HTMLTrust provides a flexible framework for content verification across numerous domains. Here are key scenarios where cryptographic content signing and verification add significant value.

Journalism and News Media

Problem: Readers need to verify that news content comes from legitimate journalists and organizations. Misinformation spreads rapidly without source attribution.

How HTMLTrust helps:

News organizations sign articles at publication time
Readers see verification indicators in their browser
Content tracking via trust directories identifies unauthorized republishing
Fact-checkers can verify content sources and provide endorsed corrections

Academic Publishing

Problem: Research integrity depends on verifiable provenance. Plagiarism detection is difficult when original authorship can’t be proven.