[DRAFT] SocialConnect Integration Kit (SCIK): Plug-and-Play Phone Number & Social ID Onboarding for Celo dApps

Governance Governance Proposals
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Receiver Entity: Celo Community Fund/ Celo Governance
Status: Draft Proposal
Title: SocialConnect Integration Kit (SCIK): Plug-and-Play Phone Number & Social ID Onboarding for Celo dApps
Authors: Dapps over Apps
Type of Request: Funding
Funding Request: $30,000 cUSD (Phase 1 MVP)

1. Summary

SocialConnect is one of Celo’s strongest features which lets users send funds to a phone number; but most dApps can’t use it. Integrating today means setting up and funding an issuer, handling complex BLS blinding, managing ODIS quota, building secure SMS flows, and meeting regional compliance rules. This work is slow, error-prone, and out of reach for many teams.

As a result, adoption is stuck in a few flagship wallets, and the rest of the ecosystem is missing a proven driver of onboarding and retention. Without a fix, Celo’s main user-experience advantage will remain underused while other chains move faster.

The SocialConnect Integration Kit solves this by giving developers a ready SDK, secure verification service, test tools, and deployable templates; making integration practical in hours once an issuer and SMS credentials are in place, with privacy, abuse controls, and compliance built in.

2. Motivation

SocialConnect is a standout feature which allows user to send cUSD to a phone number, yet most dApps still don’t ship it. To enable it today, teams must:

  1. Set up and fund an Issuer

  2. Handle BLS blinding, ODIS authentication, and pay ODIS quota

  3. Build a secure SMS OTP service

  4. Choose which Issuers to trust

  5. Integrate with the CIP-51 Federated Attestations registry and ODIS v2 endpoint

That work is demanding. The official quick-start alone covers issuer setup, ODIS balance checks, obfuscated ID lookup, and contract registration. Similarly, Celo docs note that ODIS requests consume quota and require authentication, meaning builders must pay and manage quota if they hit limits.

Without simplifying this flow, SocialConnect remains exclusive to the largest teams, leaving best UX locked behind complex DevOps. This is a missed opportunity for ecosystem growth.

That’s why the SocialConnect Integration Kit (SCIK) is urgent and important at this time. It delivers a fully-assembled SDK, secure verification service, test utilities, and templates, so once an Issuer and SMS creds are in place, anyone can add phone-number payments within hours, with privacy, abuse protection, and compliance baked in.

3. Specification

Deliverables

  1. Client SDK (@celo**/socialconnect-sdk)**

  • Web + React Native support.

  • RN: ships a native blinding module (non-WASM); fallback sealed server-side blinding mode with documented privacy trade-offs.

  • APIs: registerPhoneNumber(), lookupByPhone(), helper hooks.

  • Client-side BLS blinding before ODIS requests.

  • Issuer trust model: trustedIssuers (default self-issued only), with allowlist option and documented trade-offs.

  1. Verification Microservice (Node.js or serverless)

  • Receives phone numbers transiently to dispatch OTPs; no persistence, logs disabled by default, 0-retention policy, masked metrics.

  • ODIS integration: manages auth signer per request and per-domain quota; scripts to fund/monitor quota on Alfajores/mainnet.

  • Attestation writes: submits CIP-51 attestations via configured Issuer.

  • Abuse controls: rate-limits, CAPTCHA hook, resend back-off, IP/device throttles.

  • SMS gateways: Twilio for MVP; pluggable interface for Africa’s Talking / generic SMPP in Phase 2.

  • Regional guidance: sender IDs, short-codes, and compliance notes by country.

  1. Test Frameworks

  • Foundry & Hardhat plugins with Mock ODIS and attestation fixtures.

  • Record/replay mode for deterministic tests.

  • Clear notes that full cryptographic flows require Alfajores/mainnet (Mock ODIS is for local only).

  1. Templates & Documentation

  • Next.js + RN example apps (“Send to Contact” flow).

  • Deployment guide: Issuer registration, cUSD funding, key management, quota workflows.

  • Cost Estimator CLI for SMS/ODIS/gas.

  • Ops runbooks: Prometheus/OTel hooks, SLA targets (e.g., OTP p95 < 10s), key-rotation playbook.

4. Metrics and KPIs

KPI Target (90 days post-MVP)
SDK downloads ≥ 1,000/month
On-chain attestations via SCIK ≥ 10,000
dApps integrating SCIK ≥ 5
Hackathon usage ≥ 20 teams

5. Current Status

To our knowledge, no publicly available, production-ready end-to-end kit exists; current resources are low-level libraries and examples without packaged onboarding, privacy defaults, issuer-trust config, or abuse controls. ODIS v2 and CIP-51 are live.

6.Timeline and Milestones

Phase 1 (8 weeks) – $30k cUSD

  • SDK v0.1 (Web + RN), client blinding (RN native module + sealed server fallback), issuer-trust config.

  • Twilio-based microservice with abuse controls, ODIS auth/quota handling, attestation writes.

  • Foundry/Hardhat plugins with Mock ODIS; Alfajores demo; docs and cost estimator CLI (v0).

Phase 2 (6 weeks) – $15k cUSD (optional)

  • Africa’s Talking & SMPP integrations; country compliance matrix.

  • Vault/HSM integration for Issuer keys; CLI cost estimator v1.

  • Starter-kit inclusion for hackathons.

Phase 3 (12 months) – $30k cUSD (optional)

  • LTS maintenance for ODIS/attestation updates.

  • Additional identifier types (X/Twitter/email) as research/pilot, with proof schemes (signed post/OAuth/delegated attester).

  • Workshops, support bounties, and governance handover prep.

7. Detailed Budget (Phase 1)

Item Cost (USD)
SDK development $10,000
Verification service build $7,500
Foundry/Hardhat plugins $5,000
Documentation, templates, demos $5,000
Testing & QA $2,500
Total $30,000

8. Payment Terms

  • 100% in cUSD

  • 50% on approval

  • 50% on Phase-1 delivery (SDK, microservice, plugins, demo, docs) and QA pass

9. Team

Dapps Over Apps is a collective advancing Web3 through developer tooling and education. We build tools that improve the developer experience and run initiatives that onboard new builders into blockchain ecosystems. Our work spans core gaming infrastructure for Sandbox DAO, a retrieval tester for Filecoin, a VS Code extension for Arbitrum Stylus, contributions to Arbitrum Stylus education, cross-chain developer resources, and technical hackathons.

Core Roles & Experience

  • Abdulkareem Oyeneye – Project LeadExperienced developer-marketer and project manager with a strong background in Web3 growth and technical product execution. Has led multiple ecosystem tooling initiatives, identifying developer pain points and delivering protocol-aligned infrastructure.

  • Gospel Ifeadi – Smart Contract EngineerProficient in Rust, C++, JavaScript, and Python. Worked on multiple dApps and developer tooling projects with deep experience in backend systems, smart contract automation, and R&D.

  • Emmanuel Charles – Blockchain Developer & QA EngineerSkilled in Rust, TypeScript, and C++. Brings a dual focus on smart contract development and quality assurance for blockchain systems, ensuring robust and secure deployments.

Some Prior Works

10. Additional Support/Resources

  • Coordination with cLabs Identity for ODIS v2 best practices.

  • Early alignment with the prospective SocialConnect DAO for stewardship and long-term ownership.

  • Hackathon channels (Celo Camp, Celo Africa DAO) for distribution, feedback, and adoption.

1 Like
2

Helo Can I have a social connect integration kit for developers ( ready SDK) for implementation

Thank you

Jean