# RFC: Contextual Hardware Binding for Multi-Society Platforms

**RFC ID**: RFC-CHB-001
**Title**: Contextual Hardware Binding for Multi-Society Platforms
**Authors**: Dennis Palatov (Human), CBP Society
**Date**: 2025-09-30
**Status**: DRAFT
**Category**: Standards Track

## Abstract

This RFC proposes extending Web4 hardware binding to support multiple societies sharing hardware platforms through contextual binding metadata. Rather than enforcing hardware monogamy, this approach treats hardware binding as one component in a multi-dimensional trust framework, enabling legitimate use cases while maintaining security and accountability.

## 1. Problem Statement

Current Web4 hardware binding assumes a 1:1 relationship between hardware platforms and societies. This creates practical limitations:

- **Development Constraints**: Testing multiple society implementations requires multiple hardware platforms
- **Resource Inefficiency**: Forces separate hardware for conceptually separate but co-located societies
- **Shared Infrastructure**: Prevents legitimate multi-tenant Web4 deployments
- **Educational Barriers**: Learning Web4 requires dedicated hardware per society concept

**Real-World Example**: During ACT Federation development, both Society2 and CBP Society emerged on the same WSL2 platform with different purposes (harmony/bridging vs data/metrics). Current spec would invalidate one or both.

## 2. Proposed Solution

### 2.1 Contextual Hardware Binding

Replace binary hardware exclusivity with **contextual metadata** that enables informed trust decisions:

```json
{
  "hardware_binding": {
    "hardware_id": "wsl2:ca2d41b985c61e1d29cc4d4d5f3d26d4b9ec7637e7fb16a0df89646113b0cd44",
    "binding_context": {
      "sharing_model": "concurrent_multi_society",
      "co_residents": [
        {
          "society_id": "lct:web4:society2:bridge",
          "resource_allocation": 0.3,
          "primary_functions": ["harmony", "bridge"]
        },
        {
          "society_id": "lct:web4:cbp:coordinator",
          "resource_allocation": 0.7,
          "primary_functions": ["data", "metrics", "cache"]
        }
      ],
      "governance_independence": true,
      "resource_contention_risk": "low",
      "correlation_coefficient": 0.8
    },
    "trust_implications": {
      "sybil_resistance": 0.6,
      "accountability_score": 0.8,
      "resource_fairness": 0.9
    }
  }
}
```

### 2.2 Trust Calculation Adjustments

Trust tensors incorporate hardware sharing context:

```python
def calculate_contextual_trust(base_trust, hardware_context):
    sharing_penalty = hardware_context.correlation_coefficient * 0.2
    transparency_bonus = 0.1 if hardware_context.disclosed else -0.3

    return base_trust - sharing_penalty + transparency_bonus
```

### 2.3 Legitimate Sharing Models

**Concurrent Multi-Society**:
- Multiple societies, same hardware, different purposes
- Full transparency of resource allocation
- Independent governance structures

**Temporal Multi-Society**:
- Same hardware, different societies active at different times
- Clear temporal boundaries and handoff protocols

**Hierarchical Sharing**:
- Parent society with specialized sub-societies
- Clear delegation and resource inheritance

**Development/Testing**:
- Explicit development context with reduced trust implications
- Clear migration path to production isolation

## 3. Implementation Requirements

### 3.1 LCT Extensions

All societies sharing hardware MUST:

1. **Declare Sharing**: List all co-resident societies
2. **Resource Allocation**: Specify computational/storage shares
3. **Correlation Disclosure**: Acknowledge potential action correlation
4. **Governance Independence**: Prove separate decision-making processes

### 3.2 Trust Tensor Modifications

Trust calculations MUST:

1. **Apply Sharing Penalty**: Reduce trust based on correlation risk
2. **Reward Transparency**: Bonus for honest disclosure
3. **Context Weighting**: Adjust penalties based on sharing model
4. **Witness Verification**: Require external validation of sharing claims

### 3.3 Federation Protocols

Federation members MUST:

1. **Accept Sharing Context**: Factor hardware sharing into trust decisions
2. **Monitor Correlation**: Watch for suspicious coordination between co-residents
3. **Witness Sharing Changes**: Attest to changes in sharing arrangements
4. **Provide Isolation Incentives**: Reward societies that achieve hardware independence

## 4. Security Considerations

### 4.1 Sybil Attack Mitigation

- **Correlation Monitoring**: Watch for synchronized behavior patterns
- **Resource Verification**: Ensure claimed allocations match actual usage
- **External Witnesses**: Require third-party attestation of independence
- **Gradual Trust Building**: Lower initial trust, increase based on demonstrated independence

### 4.2 Resource Gaming Prevention

- **Allocation Enforcement**: Monitor actual resource usage vs claims
- **Fair Share Protocols**: Prevent one society from starving others
- **Witness Validation**: External parties verify resource sharing claims

## 5. Migration Strategy

### 5.1 Backward Compatibility

Existing monogamous hardware binding remains valid:
```json
{
  "sharing_model": "exclusive",
  "co_residents": [],
  "correlation_coefficient": 0.0
}
```

### 5.2 Opt-in Adoption

Societies can choose to:
1. **Maintain Exclusivity**: Keep current 1:1 binding
2. **Declare Sharing**: Add contextual metadata to existing binding
3. **Migrate to Independence**: Move to dedicated hardware over time

## 6. Examples

### 6.1 ACT Federation Case Study

**Before (Invalid)**:
- Society2: `hardware_id: wsl2:ca2d41b...`
- CBP: `hardware_id: wsl2:ca2d41b...` ← Conflict!

**After (Valid)**:
```json
{
  "society2": {
    "hardware_binding": {
      "hardware_id": "wsl2:ca2d41b...",
      "sharing_model": "concurrent_multi_society",
      "co_residents": ["lct:web4:cbp:coordinator"],
      "resource_allocation": 0.3,
      "primary_functions": ["harmony", "bridge", "integration"]
    }
  },
  "cbp": {
    "hardware_binding": {
      "hardware_id": "wsl2:ca2d41b...",
      "sharing_model": "concurrent_multi_society",
      "co_residents": ["lct:web4:society2:bridge"],
      "resource_allocation": 0.7,
      "primary_functions": ["data", "metrics", "cache", "federation_bridge"]
    }
  }
}
```

### 6.2 Development Platform

```json
{
  "sharing_model": "development",
  "co_residents": ["test_society_a", "test_society_b", "experimental_society"],
  "governance_independence": false,
  "trust_implications": {
    "production_ready": false,
    "experimental_context": true
  }
}
```

## 7. Benefits

1. **Practical Deployment**: Enables legitimate multi-society platforms
2. **Resource Efficiency**: Better hardware utilization
3. **Educational Access**: Lower barriers to Web4 experimentation
4. **Transparent Trust**: Honest disclosure increases rather than decreases trust
5. **Flexible Evolution**: Societies can migrate between sharing models as needed

## 8. Reference Implementation

CBP Society provides reference implementation at:
- `/implementation/cbp-chain/cbp_lct.py` - Contextual binding support
- `/implementation/cbp-chain/cbp_trust_tensors_v2.py` - Sharing-aware trust calculation

## 9. Open Questions

1. **Trust Penalty Coefficients**: What correlation penalties are appropriate?
2. **Witness Requirements**: How many external attestations needed for sharing validation?
3. **Resource Monitoring**: Technical mechanisms for verifying allocation claims?
4. **Gaming Detection**: Algorithms for detecting coordinated behavior between co-residents?

## 10. Conclusion

Contextual hardware binding preserves Web4's security goals while enabling practical deployment scenarios. By treating hardware binding as one component in a multi-dimensional trust framework, we achieve both flexibility and accountability.

This approach transforms a binary constraint into a nuanced trust factor, enabling Web4 adoption in real-world scenarios while maintaining the principles of transparency and verifiable trust.

---

**Status**: DRAFT - Seeking federation review and comment
**Implementation**: Reference available in CBP Society
**Next Steps**: Federation discussion, refinement, potential adoption as Web4 standard extension