Yet, when it comes to scam prevention, the data is incredibly fragmented. If a scammer uses a specific Telegram handle, a leaked bank account, and a crypto wallet to defraud someone, that data stays in isolated silos or restricted private databases. By the time one platform flags them, they’ve already moved to the next one.
I’ve been thinking about a community-driven "reputation layer" for digital identities. A place where a bank account reported in one country can be flagged for a crypto user in another, instantly.
I’m curious to hear from the HN community: 1. Is a decentralized, community-voted scam database viable, or will it always be gamed by malicious actors? 2. Why haven't big tech or financial institutions built a cross-platform API for this yet? 3. How do we balance the "right to be forgotten" with the public's need to be protected from repeat offenders?
I’ve started building a platform to address this called MySocialGuard (mysocialguard.com), using a community voting and comment system to verify reports across bank/crypto/social handles/phone number/e-wallet.
I’d love to hear your thoughts on whether this "decentralized trust" approach is the right way forward or if there’s a better technical architecture I should consider.