A year unlike any other, when much of life went online, created a compelling case for digital identity. Talk of “immunity passports,” privacy-protecting contact tracing apps and even a potential move to online voting systems all speak to the need for robust digital identities. In July 2020, the World Economic Forum published a briefing paper covering the risks and opportunities around “the internet of bodies.” From wearable technology to connected medical implants, it’s evident that our future digital identities could comprise more data than we ever thought possible. But the push for digital identity is also provoking strong pushback. The …
As the first vaccines against COVID-19 roll out, governments and institutions across the world are scrambling to figure out how to provide proof that someone has been vaccinated. Paper certificates, PDFs, wristbands and mobile apps have all been suggested — and the former director of the Centers for Disease Control, Tom Frieden, and international human rights attorney Aaron Schwid urged the adoption of digital “immunity passports” as a way to reopen the world. In theory, their idea is great. In practice, it’s terrible. Or, as the Daily Beast put it: “Vaccine Passports Are Big Tech’s Latest Dystopian Nightmare.” As a …
The COVID-19 outbreak, just like any other black swan event before it, revealed systemic weaknesses in a wide variety of industries and processes. With the information age now in full swing, this particular event emphasized the critical importance of data management, and it highlighted the failure of status quo data management systems. In terms of the global response to the pandemic, the consequences of poor data management range from exacerbated shortages to unnecessarily long medicine development times, and the end result is more lives lost. On the other hand, opportunities abound for those who embrace the next generation of data …
Chinese authorities are trying to strengthen their epidemic preparedness and have identified blockchain as a key component of the response. The Chinese Circular of the National Health Commission released its plan on June 30 on how to ramp up its information technology support amid future pandemics. One component of the strategy is the use of blockchain technology for enhancing data sharing among medical institutions. Data sharing is key The Commission is urging local health departments to promote data sharing and collaboration between online hospitals and physical medical institutions. It says that Blockchain technology should be implemented to achieve the safe …
The United Kingdom’s Open University has developed a COVID-19 proof-of-immunity app that combines blockchain with a privacy-preserving data solution from web inventor Tim Berners-Lee. The prototype app, undergoing testing as of April 29, would support the proof and verification of tamper-resistant test results for COVID-19 antigen tests and vaccination coverage. The solution could ostensibly be used to provide frontline workers, healthcare professionals and the wider public with reliable immunity certificates that would be stored on a distributed, immutable and trusted blockchain-based registry. Alongside consortium blockchain technology, the app uses solid “pods” — an acronym for the personal online data stores …