CapTP

CapTP, or Capability Transfer Protocol, is a communication protocol designed to facilitate secure and granular sharing of capabilities between different systems. Its core principle is the concept of "capabilities" as unforgeable tokens that grant specific rights or permissions. Instead of passing raw data or credentials, CapTP enables systems to transfer these capabilities, allowing the recipient to perform actions on behalf of the sender, but only those explicitly granted by the capability.

This approach enhances security by limiting the scope of access. A system holding a capability can only perform the actions associated with that specific capability, preventing unauthorized operations. It also supports the development of distributed systems and microservices, where different components need to interact and share resources securely without tightly coupled dependencies.

CapTP's design emphasizes trust and delegation. When a capability is transferred, the recipient can then further delegate or utilize that capability without needing further authentication from the original sender, as the capability itself serves as proof of authorization for specific actions. This can simplify complex authorization workflows. The protocol aims to be language and platform agnostic, allowing for interoperability between diverse software environments.