People usually assume that “the identity problem” is well-understood, and that, given how long Internet authentication has been deployed, the world has solved how to do that (whatever “that” is) securely. What exactly is “the identity problem"? For instance, how does a website get a name, how does a website get a certificate, how does a browser know who to trust to sign certificates, how does a human know the name of a website, how does a human acquire a unique name and prove they own that name? Surprisingly, there are issues with all of these aspects as deployed today. As with most security problems, some people propose “blockchain” as being “the solution”. This talk will describe what aspects of identity and authentication blockchain might address, and compare a “blockchain“ approach with what is deployed today.  If the talk spurs spirited debate, all the better.