The EigenTrust Reputation Library is a decentralized algorithm for computing global trust values across a peer-to-peer network. It was originally designed to reduce the impact of unreliable or malicious peers by aggregating local trust evaluations into a stable, global reputation score.
# Overview EigenTrust works by asking each peer to rate its direct interactions, producing a matrix of local trust values. These values are iteratively propagated through the network using a power-iteration method until they converge on global trust scores. The resulting reputation metric is resistant to manipulation because it emerges from the collective judgments of the entire network rather than a single authority.
# Key Characteristics EigenTrust is widely recognized for: - Decentralized computation without a central controller - Resistance to collusion and reputation inflation - Iterative trust propagation that converges on stable global values - Suitability for distributed systems where identities are cheap and churn is frequent
# Notable GitHub Implementations
The following open-source projects implement or extend EigenTrust:
- **zk-eigentrust**
A Rust + Halo2 implementation using zero-knowledge proofs to verify trust computations in distributed environments
- privacy-scaling-explorations/zk-eigentrust 
- **Saorsa Core**
A P2P networking stack that uses EigenTrust for node selection and routing decisions
- dirvine/saorsa
These codebases provide working foundations for integrating EigenTrust into Web3 systems, distributed applications, or local homelab peer-to-peer clusters.
# Applications EigenTrust can support: - Community-driven journalistic reputation systems - Distributed moderation and peer-verification systems - P2P networking and file-sharing trust layers - Decentralized identity and self-sovereign systems - Prediction-based reputation networks where users gain credibility for accurate assessments
# Similar or Alternative Algorithms and Libraries
There are several other open-source trust and reputation systems that offer complementary or alternative approaches:
- **DCoSL (Decentralized Curation of Simple Lists)**
A list-curation protocol built on a web-of-trust model
- 0xk1h0/dcosl
- **Reputation DAO**
A Web3-native decentralized reputation scoring protocol
- opencollective.com/reputationdao
- **GNUnet**
A secure P2P framework with integrated trust and anonymity models
- gnunet.org
- **Libp2p**
A modular P2P networking stack with identity, discovery, gossip, and trust-adjacent primitives
- libp2p.io
- **Confidential Consortium Framework (CCF)**
A verifiable distributed runtime for multi-party trust, useful for enterprise or consortium settings
- microsoft.github.io/CCF
# Summary EigenTrust remains one of the most influential decentralized reputation algorithms, especially for systems aiming to minimize sybil attacks, collusion, and biased peer scoring. Its open-source implementations and conceptual simplicity make it a strong foundation for the Hitchhiker Field Researcher Reputation System and other community-driven governance models.
# See