The company has indicated that all organizations and firms that use this service will be able to establish their criteria for the verification of infections with coronavirus. However, nobody knows yet which companies are interested in using this service.
On the one hand, Amid a long quarantine imposed by the coronavirus pandemic, the return to shared spaces, such as schools, airplanes, stadiums, and offices, has become a complex activity. On the other hand, firms such as IBM have been developing applications that could offer a safer transition from our homes to life on the street, by minimizing exposure to COVID-19.
IBM Watson Health, a data, analytics, and technology company that works within the healthcare industry has designed a verification system based on blockchain and artificial intelligence (AI) that will help monitor whether a student, worker, or citizen is healthy to use public space.
The new mobile application will record information related to potential spots where can happen coronavirus infections and will serve as a pass for healthy people who wish to go to clubs, use transport, or travel internationally. The platform can be downloaded to smartphones as a wallet and can record Covid-19 tests and temperature scans, which can be shared with third parties to access a particular location.
IBM also ensures that users will have full control over their data and will be able to choose who to share that information with or not. IBM Watson Health ensures that the app “uses sophisticated cryptographic techniques” to make sure that this data does not reach public status if its owners do not want it.
Although blockchain networks can record and secure private information within the chain, it is also important to remember that this does not certify that the aggregated data is real. There is still no tool that can confirm that the information that a person provides to a network is reliable, so there may be malicious parties that share evidence of Covid-19 or other false data intending to access somewhere.
A notable number of monitoring services are seeing light due to coronavirus
Users will have their tray of functions in the application, allowing them to update their medical data according to IBM. Those interested in this IBM application can start using it in three easy steps, downloading the app on their smartphone, logging in, and verifying their identity.
Likewise, all the individual’s medical data can be registered in the service if the tests have a QR code, which can be scanned by the wallet. The tool generates a credential for all those users who are healthy, a document that can be used to travel on public transport or reopen businesses.
In addition to IBM, other companies internationally have been exploring the possibility of using blockchain-based applications. For example, the international entity LACChain recently launched a platform for the same purpose for all of Latin America. Likewise, General Electric has also been using this same method to revive international travel.
Countries such as Spain and Brazil have also been discussing the possibility of incorporating a similar system for their entire population; this is a trend that confirms that as long as the coronavirus pandemic continues, blockchain networks can become an ally to prevent the spread of the virus.
By: Jenson Nuñez.
