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Glossary of Terms

This document defines the key concepts and terminology used throughout the Splitter project.

Decentralized Identity (DID)

  • DID (Decentralized Identifier): A globally unique identifier that does not require a centralized registration authority. In Splitter, we primarily use did:key.
  • Keypair: A set of two related cryptographic keys: a Private Key (kept secret by the user) and a Public Key (shared with the network).
  • did:key: A specific DID method where the identifier is derived directly from the public key itself.
  • Challenge-Response: An authentication mechanism where the server sends a random nonce (challenge) and the client must sign it with their private key (response) to prove identity.

Federation & ActivityPub

  • Fediverse: The network of federated social media servers that communicate using open protocols.
  • ActivityPub: The decentralized social networking protocol used for server-to-server and client-to-server communication.
  • Actor: An entity in ActivityPub (usually a person or a bot) that can perform activities.
  • Inbox: The endpoint where an Actor receives incoming activities from other servers.
  • Outbox: The endpoint where an Actor publishes their activities to be distributed to others.
  • Shared Inbox: A single inbox on an instance used to receive messages destined for multiple users on that same instance, optimizing network traffic.
  • WebFinger: A protocol used to discover information about people or entities by their email-like addresses (e.g., @user@domain.com).

Messaging & Security

  • E2EE (End-to-End Encryption): A system of communication where only the communicating users can read the messages.
  • ECDH (Elliptic Curve Diffie-Hellman): A key agreement protocol that allows two parties to establish a shared secret over an insecure channel.
  • AES-GCM: Advanced Encryption Standard in Galois/Counter Mode, used for high-performance authenticated encryption.
  • JWT (JSON Web Token): A compact, URL-safe means of representing claims to be transferred between two parties.
  • JWT Rotation: A security practice where a new JWT is issued periodically to limit the window of opportunity for a stolen token.