Decentralized sensitive information sharing

A non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing instructions for managing a secret embodied as machine-readable data in a decentralized computer environment, the instructions executable by one or more processors for performing steps including:

• at a secret owner's computing system, deriving a plurality of shares from a secret such that the secret is reconstructable from at least a quorum number of the plurality of shares;
• selecting, a set of guardian computing systems for storing the plurality of shares in a decentralized manner;
• communicating messages via a communication protocol with each of the set of guardian computing systems, wherein at least some of the messages include encryption protocol data that operates to coordinate key updates for securing subsequently transmitted messages between the secret owner's computing system and the respective guardian computing systems,
• wherein, communicating the messages includes:
• transmitting one of the plurality of shares from the secret owner's computing system to the guardian computing system in secured form in accordance with the communication protocol;
• responsive to a request for reconstruction of the secret, sending respective requests for respective shares to at least a subset of the set of guardian computing systems, wherein the subset comprises at least the quorum number;
• receiving, using the communication protocol, at least a subset of the plurality of shares from at least the subset of guardian computing systems, wherein the subset of the plurality of shares comprises at least the quorum number;
• reconstructing the secret from the subset of the plurality of shares;
• and
• outputting the secret.

A computer system for managing a secret embodied as machine-readable data in a decentralized computer environment, the computing system comprising:

• one or more processors;
• and
• a non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing instructions executable by one or more processors for performing steps comprising:
• at a secret owner's computing system, deriving a plurality of shares from a secret such that the secret is reconstructable from at least a quorum number of the plurality of shares;
• selecting, a set of guardian computing systems for storing the plurality of shares in a decentralized manner;
• communicating messages via a communication protocol with each of the set of guardian computing systems, wherein at least some of the messages include encryption protocol data that operates to coordinate key updates for securing subsequently transmitted messages between the secret owner's computing system and the respective guardian computing systems,
• wherein, communicating the messages includes:
• transmitting one of the plurality of shares from the secret owner's computing system to the guardian computing system in secured form in accordance with the communication protocol;
• responsive to a request for reconstruction of the secret, sending respective requests for respective shares to at least a subset of the set of guardian computing systems, wherein the subset comprises at least the quorum number;
• receiving, using the communication protocol, at least a subset of the plurality of shares from at least the subset of guardian computing systems, wherein the subset of the plurality of shares comprises at least the quorum number;
• reconstructing the secret from the subset of the plurality of shares;
• and
• outputting the secret.