Working on Hive Authentication Services integration for the Condenser

Since couple of weeks before the Christmas break, I've been working with @arcange and @stoodkev on implementation a support for Hive Authentication Services (HAS) for the Condenser.

In a nutshell, HAS allows you to login and perform operations on the blockchain via your favourite app without the need of giving your private keys to the app. It is using what's called PKSA (Private Key Storage App), Hive Keychain is a PKSA for example, installed on your mobile device to do the signing.

You might think you don't need HAS since you are already using Hive Keychain chrome browser extension. But what if you were travelling and don't have your computer with you? Would you trust the public computer enough to install Hive Keychain and enter your keys? With HAS, your app can just use the HAS server as a communication channel between the app itself and the PKSA. You just need to scan a QR code displayed on the app and scan it with Hive Keychain for example.

Here is a screencast of the Condenser integration in action:

https://share.getcloudapp.com/04uLeeWG

What's been done so far:

• integration with the login popup
• generating the QR code
• authenticating via the PKSA app
• making a post / comment
• making a vote

I now still need to handle errors coming back from HAS server and the PKSA.

Things are still beta at the moment and there are few challenges to overcome.