#utopian-io

SteemLogin - a new and easy way to sign in to Steem!

Repository

https://www.github.com/irelandscape/steemlogin

Introduction

SteemLogin is a brand new application providing the easiest way to login to the Steem blockchain using mainstream authentication providers such as Google and Facebook.

By adopting SteemLogin, Steem application users will never need ever again to enter their 50 character posting key to contribute and upvote content on the Steem blockchain.

Interested? Then read on!

What is SteemLogin?

SteemLogin Overview

We are delighted to present you SteemLogin, a brand new application easing the process of authenticating users with the Steem blockchain.

By adopting SteemLogin, Steem app developers enable their users to sign in using their Google, Facebook, Twitter or GitHub account!

More precisely, SteemLogin allows users to store once and for all their Steem username and private posting key on a secure Cloud Firestore database, a solution provided by Google aiming to eliminate the need for application providers to host, scale and secure their own backend database.

Once stored, the Steem username and posting key information is sent securely over HTTPS to the application upon successful authentication with the aforementioned providers.

This process will work across any Steem app enabled with SteemLogin and across any device!

Why use SteemLogin?

A posting key looks like this:

5K7dsflOerj8324lfsdf0lfsKDFSL0284kF9KFWl85skdfk37ks

This is a 50 character hash which is impossible to memorize and difficult to enter without making any mistakes.

You seriously expect me to type this in?!? (credit: Pixabay)

While such passwords are very awkward to type in on a PC/laptop, the task becomes even more painful when using handheld devices.

In our opinion this is one of the main barriers standing in the way for wide adoption of Steem applications!

In this day and age people have come to expect being able to login to most applications using mainstream content providers and social networks.

This is the user experience that SteemLogin will provide to your Steem apps!

How secure is SteemLogin?

We take the safeguard of Steem users personal data very seriously.

credit: Pixabay

SteemLogin will only store a user's posting key and username and will prevent anybody from inadvertently supply more sensitive keys such as the active key and owner key.

What is the posting key for? The posting key can only be used for posting, editing and upvoting content on the Steem blockchain, which is what most people do during their day to day use of Steem applications.

In particular, the posting key does not allow financial transactions to be performed, nor does it permit to update personal information.

Yet, SteemLogin treats the handling of the posting key with the upmost care.

Specifically:

All information exchanged with external Steem applications and authentication providers are transferred encrypted over HTTTPS.
Users' Steem usernames and posting keys are stored in a hosted Cloud Firestore database with security rules preventing users from accessing other users' data. These security rules are a core and unique feature provided by Firebase which makes this solution particularly suited to SteemLogin.

With our declarative security language, you can restrict data access based on user identity data, pattern matching on your data, and more. Cloud Firestore also integrates with Firebase Authentication to give you simple and intuitive user authentication.

From the Firestore information page

SteemLogin follows OAuth2 design principles and does not return directly tokens and keys back to the client in a way that would leave traces within the user browser history.
SteemLogin verifies that the user does not accidentally store any other Steem key than the posting key. Owner keys, master keys, passwords and similar sensitive material cannot be stored within the database.
SteemLogin is open source. The code can be downloaded and analyzed by anybody from our GitHub repository

Why not using Steemconnect?

While Steemconnect has been the de facto application allowing users to authenticate with the Steem blockchain, it still does not prevent users from having to input their active key within each application and each device.

In our opinion the complexity of entering a 50 hexadecimal key on a mobile device to access the Steem blockchain eliminates any chance for massive adoption of Steem applications.

Furthermore, current Steem login mechanisms provide zero integration with mainstream social networks and content providers, such as Facebook and Google.

SteemLogin addresses all of the above issues.

Once the posting key has been entered by the user, it will never need to be supplied ever again across any supported application and any device!

SteemLogin provides a familiar user experience

Authentication Providers With SteemLogin, users are invited to authenticate in a manner that is very familiar to most.

Simply select your authentication provider of choice and authorize SteemLogin to access your basic profile information.

In this day and age this is the most common way to authenticate yourself with most online applications!

Enable your app with SteemLogin in 3 easy steps!

Steemlogin is free and easy to integrate within your app:

Add a "login" link to your app which points to SteemLogin authentication URL (https://auth.steemlogin.net)
Service your own authentication success/failure URL. Users will be redirected to these URLs upon completing the authentication procedure with their authentication provider of choice.
Retrieve securely the Steem username and posting key from SteemLogin by issuing a GET HTTPs request with the supplied unique authorization code.

These steps above and more are explained in details on our web site developers page.

Which applications currently support SteemLogin?

StemQ - a Q&A application dedicated to STEM subjects - is currently the only supporting application but other apps are currently in the process of integrating their login process with SteemLogin.

SteemLogin has just been launched and its team is now actively getting in touch with other Steem app owners to get wider acceptance.

Who is behind SteemLogin?

@irelandscape is the project owner and main developer and has been supported by some members of the @steemstem community.

Where can I find more information?

For more information, please check our official website: https://www.steemlogin.net

We have also setup a Discord server for all suggestions and requests for assistance: https://discord.gg/YrU9nsX

Looking for a logo!

SteemLogin doesn't have an official logo yet. One of our first tasks will be to submit a new logo task request for the project.

Please let us know if you are a graphic designer and would like to propose a great artistic concept!

Resources

Steemlogin web site: https://www.steemlogin.net
Firebase
Cloud Firestore

Series Backlinks

This is the first post in this series.

Comments · 37

@steemitboard(66)· 2368d
Congratulations @steemlogin! You received a personal award!

Happy Birthday! - You are on the Steem blockchain for 1 year!
_{You can view your badges on your Steem Board and compare to others on the Steem Ranking}

Do not miss the last post from @steemitboard:

Use your witness votes and get the Community Badge
Vote for @Steemitboard as a witness to get one more award and increased upvotes!
@katamori(50)· 2675d
If a Google service becomes a "bottleneck" in logistics, how is it a decentralized solution in the end?

All of it boils down to people's inability to handle their passwords in a responsible way.

Admittedly, keys are impractical, but are also free of any other service. (aside of witnesses, but that's OK)
@magicdice(64)· 2675d
Magic Dice has rewarded your post with a 1% upvote. Thanks for playing Magic Dice.
@utopian-io(72)· 2676d
Hey, @steemlogin!

Thanks for contributing on Utopian. We’re already looking forward to your next contribution!

Get higher incentives and support Utopian.io! Simply set @utopian.pay as a 5% (or higher) payout beneficiary on your contribution post (via SteemPlus or Steeditor).

Want to chat? Join us on Discord https://discord.gg/h52nFrV.

Vote for Utopian Witness!
@steem-ua(64)· 2676d
Hi @steemlogin!

Your post was upvoted by @steem-ua, new Steem dApp, using UserAuthority for algorithmic post curation! Your post is eligible for our upvote, thanks to our collaboration with @utopian-io! Feel free to join our @steem-ua Discord server
@tykee(73)· 2676d
Thank you for introducing your great project via Utopian. This is a job well done. The other means to log into Steem apps are also cool, but I think this one is a better alternative and would have good impact on Steem apps. I tried it on the StemQ site, and it works pretty well. I hope every good project on the Blockchain adopts this Steemlogin ASAP.

The information is clear. The post is very informative, and the flow-chart describes the process correctly.

Since you need a logo for the project, you could use the Utopian Graphics category to create a TR and get designers to work on your project.

Thank you!

Your contribution has been evaluated according to Utopian policies and guidelines, as well as a predefined set of questions pertaining to the category.

To view those questions and the relevant answers related to your post, click here.

Need help? Chat with us on Discord.

[utopian-moderator]
@adasq(63)· 2676d
@mickvir(68)· 2676d
This is awesome. Just what steem needs. I have felt for ages that the login process has been one of the things discouraging mass adoption.

Great job!

Have an awesome day!

Posted using Partiko iOS
@itegoarcanadei(61)· 2677d
Very very very gooooood!!! 👍👍awesome!

Posted using Partiko Android
@arcange(79)· 2677d
Congratulations @steemlogin! Your post was mentioned in the Steem Hit Parade in the following category:
- Comments - Ranked 2 with 76 comments
@drago18121996(72)· 2677d
thanks for upvoting my last post!!!
@eugelys(79)· 2677d
Good news :) I AM a graphic designer and I would like to propose artistic concept :) What I have to do?

Posted using Partiko Android
@maurice1975(33)· 2677d
Hi, any plans for Ledger Nano S support?
@adewararilwan(59)· 2677d
A really good project. I will be willing to contribute to the project with a logo to enable the development of this project. Regards! @adewararilwan
@videosteemit(62)· 2677d
Woow. Great idea! Tools like this are what can push STEEM light years ahead of the other blockchains when it comes to mainstreaming crypto

Posted using Partiko Android
@michealb(67)· 2677d
good job!
@ironshield(76)· 2677d
One more step towards mass adoption. It's coming somewhere, might as well be here.

Posted using Partiko Android
@pennsif(77)· 2677d
This post has been included in the latest edition of The Steem News in 10 posts - a compilation of the key news stories on the Steem blockchain.
@culgin(72)· 2677d
Looks awesome! I have been waiting for something like this since the day I started on Steem. Great to see this implemented by the community.

The security aspect of this demands more scrutiny though
@thelogicaldude(74)· 2677d
This is awesome! So I think being able to have a custom passcode for users but still being able to secure the keys would be a huge thing, but also being able to use the other, already existing accounts will really help adoption!

Posted using Partiko iOS
@amico(67)· 2677d
I mentored some friends to help them using some Steem Dapps and I personally experienced that the biggest broblem was the input of the private key.

So, this is a Great Usability Enhancement! 👏

Resteemed and followed with joy!

A huge hug from @amico! 🤗
@quochuy(78)· 2678d
What is the difference between using steemlogin and the Dapp storing the keys into Firestore themselves?

The success/failure URL is exposed to the public, what is the process for the dApp success/failure script to validate the code being received is really coming from steemlogin and not some spoofed data?
@agmoore(76)· 2678d
I just love the way you keep innovating. Have resteemed. Appreciate alternatives that help to insure the community will have a future. I'll try to work my way through the weeds and use this new option. Keep working :)
@ajayyy(65)· 2678d
Very insecure, not worth it. At least use a system like steemconnect where the user gives the other user authority. Don't give up the private keys.

Steemconnect is already insecure, this is 10x worse. Just look at what happened to utopian when they got hacked.
@masterthematrix(61)· 2678d
Very much needed service, thanks for delivering it to the community!
@lemouth(75)· 2678d
I have been very busy those days so that steemsteem.io is not using it at the moment. But this is the item #1 on the to-do list! :)
@thedegensloth(60)· 2678d
Anything storing your chain passwords is a potential risk of losing everything. If you're going to trust someone to store your data it should be yourself or your browser.

There are two trusted methods right now, steem keychain handshake.

The other method is to compare your private key to public key and on confirmation create a session, then store the posting key in the browser encrypted.
@roleerob(71)· 2678d
Well, @steemlogin ...

"... to store once and for all their Steem username and private posting key on a secure Cloud Firestore database, a solution provided by Google ..."

[emphasis mine]

... this is concerning for me. "Secure" and "Google" in the same sentence? Hmmm ... You presumably have far more faith in the altruistic intent of this global giant than I do ...
@ange.nkuru(66)· 2678d
Being a phone only user this is amazing news, steemconnect bugs sometimes n somehow keychain is a no go on my phone. Looking forward to trying out the app and expecting great things!

Posted using Partiko Android
@jacekw(70)· 2678d
Seems interesting. What are pros / cons compared with Keychain?
@freddio(60)· 2678d
very nice
@soyrosa(75)· 2678d
Wait what?! This is HUGE! Resteeming for more visibility. ‘Onboarding normies’, anyone?

Posted using Partiko iOS
@akomoajong(66)· 2678d
This is super amazing! Steemconnect is a great interface but I have been a victim of not been able to login to a dApp a few times because I have to use my keys to authorize a new login through steemconnect and I happened to be on mobile at the time, where I don't save my keys.

I think this dApp provides more flexibility. Thumbs up!

Posted using Partiko Android
@thedarkhorse(68)· 2678d

In our opinion the complexity of entering a 50 hexadecimal key on a mobile device to access the Steem blockchain eliminates any chance for massive adoption of Steem applications.

100% agree with this. The other issue is RC's and until we have a RC delegation option this will really limit our potential growth.
@steemitboard(66)· 2678d
Congratulations @steemlogin! You have completed the following achievement on the Steem blockchain and have been rewarded with new badge(s) :

You published your First Post

You got a First Vote

You received more than 10 upvotes. Your next target is to reach 50 upvotes.

_{You can view your badges on your Steem Board and compare to others on the Steem Ranking} _{If you no longer want to receive notifications, reply to this comment with the word STOP}

Vote for @Steemitboard as a witness to get one more award and increased upvotes!
@alexs1320(72)· 2678d
If this post doesn't become No1 on Trending, people are blind
@jpphotography(71)· 2678d
This is awesome! We want to integrate something just like this in @travelfeed.