New procedures are being implemented as the world slowly begins to reopen amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. While temperature checks and mandatory face masks have become the new normal, the world is also witnessing the rise of digital health apps, or “health passports.” Many of these applications serve as a solution to trace individuals’ whereabouts or to store COVID-19 test results, which can then be presented to officials during travel or gatherings to show proof-of-health. While innovative, privacy and regulatory concerns have been expressed with digital solutions designed to trace contact or store user data via smartphones. Blockchain ensures privacy …

A new application powered by the IBM blockchain aims to help people around the world return to physical encounters amid the coronavirus pandemic. IBM Watson Health, a healthcare-focused arm of tech giant IBM, is launching IBM Digital Health Pass, a blockchain-based app to support global organizations and companies as they start reopening after months of lockdown. IBM Watson stated that the new app can deploy multiple data types like COVID-19 test results and onsite temperature scans to generate a verified health status. With the opportunity to verify health status via the app, individuals can safely access public locations like a …

To navigate well in a digital world, we must be able to easily and securely establish our digital identity. Traditionally, a username, password and some trivial arcana like our first pet’s name have been key pieces of information held by institutions to establish our digital identity. Unfortunately, this system has come at a high cost. Trusting third parties to securely hold our personal data is a risky — and often losing — proposition. The number of hacks that have resulted in stolen personal data is staggering. In the top 15 data breaches, the personal data of 3.5 billion people have …

China’s first blockchain-powered hospital is set to launch sometime in 2021, but some government officials voiced concerns over data security. According to Cn-Healthcare, the First Affiliated Hospital of Dalian Medical University will launch a pilot program by January 2021 as blockchain integration is still incomplete. The hospital will use the blockchain to store patient and treatment information. The operators also said that such a blockchain-powered platform will allow patients to access the so-called “internet hospital” services via a WeChat applet, whose blockchain network stores consultation and treatment data by aiming to maximize contactless solutions due to the pandemic. However, officials …

In a pandemic era of unprecedented health data collection and surveillance, Singapore is turning to blockchain technology for the infrastructure that can make it work. Government-owned investment firm SGInnovate and Singaporean startup Accredify have jointly developed a new blockchain-powered digital health passport, according to a report on Sept. 30. Development work on the application, which allows personal medical data to be stored in a blockchain-secured digital wallet, began in May. A successful pilot in July showed that the app was capable of managing and verifying digitized healthcare documents — including COVID-19 discharge memos, swab results, immunity proof, and vaccination records …

As the world is battling to recover from the damage caused by the coronavirus pandemic, a major cryptocurrency event in Switzerland prepares to take return to a physical format. Crypto Finance Conference (CfC) St. Moritz, an international crypto event held in St. Moritz, will take place from Jan. 20–22, 2021, and feature speakers from key industry firms and institutions like Winklevoss Capital, Swiss National Bank, the European Parliament, Ledger and others. Cointelegraph will serve as the main media partner for the CfC St. Moritz 2021. The upcoming conference is the fourth annual iteration of CfC St. Moritz and will be …

With today’s technological and medical advancements, quality, affordable healthcare should be a basic human right: healthcare for every single person, no matter their socioeconomic level or geographic location. The global size of the healthcare market was worth over a staggering $8.45 trillion in 2018 and continues to grow. With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s well known that medicine is moving online and going digital. But how is this related to decentralized finance? The decentralized finance community is rapidly growing but is currently still in its early stages with the focus primarily on yield farming. Related: How blockchain will …

The government of South Korea has issued warnings to the public to avoid real life crypto meetups due to the “high risk” of catching coronavirus in the midst of a second outbreak in the country. Segye Ilbo reports the authorities not only warned about COVID-19-related fears but of the potential for “financial damages to consumers,” following reports about fraudsters holding meetups to attract people into multi-level marketing (MLM) schemes. One of the companies quoted by local media outlets is an “unregistered door-to-door sales company” called Muhan Group, which promotes a multilevel marketing investment opportunity allegedly based in cryptoassets. In reality …

The strain placed on healthcare teams and networks over the past few months has been severe, pushing dedicated medical professionals to the limit as they work tirelessly to combat COVID-19 in communities around the world. The crisis has permeated every facet of society, shining a spotlight on the glaring inefficiencies within the traditional global healthcare system and illustrating the inherent need for technology-driven initiatives that can alleviate pressure on healthcare professionals and ensure patient data collation is as streamlined and secure as possible. As someone who has long championed the potential of blockchain technology to be a transformative enabler of …

According to Asia Kyungjae, at least 44 employees of an unnamed South Korean Blockchain company recently tested positive for COVID-19. The employees have since been quarantined. The report states that the company is based in the southern Gwanak District of Seoul; a well-known hub for large tech companies. Some are concerned that this newly discovered hotspot could lead to a fresh wave of coronavirus patients in the country. We previously reported that Jeju Island, a tourism-heavy island in South Korea, now requires all visitors to use a Blockchain-based app to generate a decentralized identity for private and secure COVID-19 contact …

A system in which health officials would be able to track blood donations from vein-to-vein in real-time, given the complexities of the blood supply chain, may sound impossible. However, using blockchain technology to track and trace blood supply chains may turn this idea closer to reality. The American Red Cross estimates that someone in the United States needs blood every two seconds. The organization further announced that it’s facing a severe shortage of blood, particularly that of convalescent plasma — a type of blood donation that contains antibodies collected from individuals who have recently recovered from COVID-19. It’s clear that …

The government of South Korea is trying its best to adopt blockchain technology in various industries. The country’s central bank is reviewing the use of a central bank digital currency, and various government ministries want to adopt decentralized identification features within their current systems. Hospitals, pharmaceutical companies and research centers are also looking at blockchain solutions. Everyone knows that blockchain can help the medical industry, but at the same time, applying a new blockchain service structure to traditional industries is not so quick and simple. Lots of testing needs to be done before it can be to be applied in …