Proof of Clean Hands: Keep the Obligation, Drop the Plaintext Store

Proof of Clean Hands, a zero-knowledge KYC design from human.tech, argues that regulators can keep AML and identity obligations while dropping the plaintext identity store that collect-and-retain KYC requires. The article says that store became a liability through breaches, AI-enabled misuse and future quantum decryption. It describes a system where users prove they are real, unique, non-sanctioned and over 18 without revealing documents, with identity recoverable only under a public, pre-committed onchain condition and every disclosure logged.