Decentralized database associating public keys and communications addresses

A computer-implemented method performed on a data processing apparatus comprising:

• sending, by a validator computing device of a peer-to-peer network for a decentralized database, to a communications address from a request for verification entry in a verification queue of the decentralized database, a signed secret message;
• receiving, by the validator computing device, a second request for verification comprising the communications address and a user-signed secret message;
• verifying, by the validator computing device, the user-signed secret message using a public key from the request for verification entry in the verification queue;
• and
• writing, by the validator computing device, the communications address and public key to a verified database of the decentralized database when verifying the user-signed secret message causes a number of user-signed secret messages received in requests for verification with the communications address and successfully verified to meet a threshold number or writing, by the validator computing device, the second request for verification to the verification queue with the user-signed secret message when verifying the user-signed secret message does not cause a number of user-signed secret messages received in requests for verification with the communications address and successfully verified to meet the threshold number.