Prologue

Introduction

The Aqua Protocol (AQP) is a data accountability and exchange protocol between hosts in peer-to-peer environments. The AQP is used to realize the goal of accounting for data origin and history (data provenance). Short: A verifiable linkable data structure to attest and certify data.

Issues for improving the protocol are tracked here: https://github.com/inblockio/aqua-improvement-proposal

Motivation

In today's world, there are no widely adopted trustless processes of checking if data have been manipulated or corrupted, are attributed to the wrong author, or are attributed to the wrong time. Today's processes are dependent on centralized trusted services which retain all power over governing the data.

There is a lack of transparency or ability to check if data have been altered by an unauthorized party. Additionally, consumers of data are incapable of verifying if centralized services have altered the data. This leads to a world of untrustworthy information in which we don't know how to conclude what is true.

In a world where every piece of information is a grain in a sandstorm, it has become impossible to navigate reality. In contrast, in a world where every piece of information is a fixed star in the sky for a lifetime, we are able to relate and make sense of the information given. The Aqua Protocol (AQP) turns grains of information into fixed stars of information.

The AQP adds a peer-to-peer layer of accountability, making it impossible to change data unnoticed. AQP adds an essential line of defense against attacks on data integrity, plagiarism, or misattribution. AQP is used to govern trusted data, which can be quickly verified. This includes the verification of its integrity and history, the verification of its account (the entity who creates or manipulates the data), and the verification of its existence and timestamp.