NEM Foundation and the Vault Team Present a Tool against Crypto-Criminals

Maria Rodríguez
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NEM Foundation and the Vault Team Present a Tool against Crypto-Criminals

In the first quarter of the year, robberies in the ecosystem caused losses similar to those registered during 2018, which were 1.7 billion dollars

At the beginning of 2019, two major thefts took place in the cryptographic world. The Binance exchange house suffered a hack, in early May, which caused losses of $ 40 million, equivalent to 7,000 bitcoins (BTC), whilst the Cryptopia exchange house, in New Zealand, seems not to be recovered yet. It lost NZD $ 23 million ($ 15 million) last January.

Among these two companies, Binance managed to recover its operations almost immediately thanks to updating its system, which allowed it to relaunch its platform on May 15th. A group of hackers eluded the security of the system and took advantage of a large-scale vulnerability, which allowed them to access some keys and other data.

The company took its measures, but the theft motivated it to seek more mechanisms of protection for cryptocurrencies and exchange houses users. In the first quarter of the year, these and other robberies in the ecosystem caused losses similar to those that were recorded during the year 2018, which were about $ 1.7 trillion.

For these reasons, the NEM Foundation and the cybersecurity company The Vault (which is from Singapore) came together to present an anti-fraud solution for the problem that has a negative impact on the reputation of digital assets and on the trust of some users.

As happened in the past with traditional money, since the creation of the first cryptocurrencies and their potential value, criminals in the network emerged, who intend to take over the passwords and other user data.

Watchful Procedure

The anti-fraud solution will use a consensus network to identify the addresses of fraudulent or malicious wallets. The tool will take advantage of the information generated in the cryptographic exchanges, the wallet owners, and the custodians that supply a combination of black, gray and white digital addresses to a decentralized database.

When making transfers of digital assets, which can be an exchange or purchase made with cryptocurrencies, the NEM-Vault solution verifies the supply and receipt addresses to verify that they are legitimate. In addition, to keep track, the addresses included in the black list can be ignored before sending or receiving a transaction.

According to Dannie Francis, the Vault’s CEO: “It’s a simple solution. But it is significant for consumers who want a guaranteed certainty when making withdrawals or paying someone. Their transaction will not be sent to the wrong address”.

What happens with transactions in blockchain platforms is that they are public. They do not reveal the data of the users who participate in it, but these users are identified with alphanumeric addresses. Therefore, the proposal of these two companies is that each user has a “background story”, without revealing their identity, but allowing it to be known if it is reliable or not.

Artificial Intelligence as an Impulse

The solution will be established in a private blockchain based on NEM. The Vault will take care of the development and NEM will provide marketing and commercial development resources.

“This is the first phase in the launch of The Vault’s security platform, a platform comprising a security consensus alliance driven by a fraud detection solution based on Artificial Intelligence (AI)”, said Jasmine Ng, CEO of NEM.

The NEM-Vault alternative would be of great help to users. The Vault platform is also driven by Artificial Intelligence, which monitors the digital assets of its clients, avoids fraudulent transactions and guarantees the validity of transactions. The solution is estimated to be ready in the next three months, and users are now waiting for it.

By María Rodríguez

74% of BTC’S Mining is through Renewable Energy, Coinshares Study Reveals

Maria Rodríguez
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74% of BTC’S Mining is through Renewable Energy, Coinshares Study Reveals

Coinshares shows that both sectors maintain a close relationship of reciprocity which drives both industries

A recent study, conducted by the prestigious cryptocurrency market research company CoinShares, revealed that 74% of the energy used for Bitcoin mining (BTC) comes from renewable generation sources.

The study also reveals that in terms of the rise in current BTC prices, it turns out to be an extremely profitable business. In this way, comparing the energy that is required to conduct the mining process, the document issued by the company reads as follows: “At current prices, the average miner is highly profitable, even with older equipment and high-cost producers that can currently have a positive Return on Investment (ROI)”.

Among the data highlighted in the study, it was also discovered that all operations linked to mining processes are much more concentrated in places where green energy is more accessible and used in greater quantities. This suggests that in these places miners take advantage of the characteristics of the area to improve their work and, in addition, contribute with the environment.

On this matter, the statement explains: “The estimate of renewable energies has fallen from 77.8%, comparing with our report of November 2018. It reflects a greater visibility of the industry on our part, as well as movements within it”.

The close relationship between renewable energies and Bitcoin’s mining work builds a whole machinery that drives the entire industry and sustains the development of green energy generation. In addition, they assure that this reciprocity makes it one of the industries most supported by renewable energies in the whole world.

Among other relevant aspects, the report states that there was a significant increase in the network of users. This data indicates an increase of 40 quintillions of hashes per second (EH / s) to around 50 EH / s, from November of last year until the date of completion of the study.

This means that the computing power for digital mining in the network has been much slower compared to the one of about 10 years ago, but it would be more stable compared to 5 years ago.

It should also be noted that there was a decrease in the hashrate (a unit to measure the processing power of the bitcoin network) by at least 40%, recording this information from last year. They claim to be the first instance to register this important decrease in the computer network.

The study argues that the increase in the computing power of the Bitcoin network is the result of the previous mining hardware, which work again once bitcoin prices increase in value and become more profitable.

Among some other factors is the use of all circuits used in the next generation of the Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASIC), which makes this process even more effective.

The use of renewable energies contributes with the preservation of the environment and also makes possible to increase the number of miners and the operations to obtain and trade cryptocurrencies, which are accepted in different countries, such as Malta, and in web pages as a valid payment method. These digital assets are taking more presence every day and get them is now something very important for users.

By María Rodríguez

Budweiser Company Sees in Blockchain the Opportunity to Reduce Poverty by 2023

Maria Rodríguez
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Budweiser Company Sees in Blockchain the Opportunity to Reduce Poverty by 2023

Until now, the startup has helped more than 200,000 people and aims to lift 100 million people out of poverty by the year 2023

Anheuser-Busch InBev, the parent company of the Budweiser brewing company, is working on using blockchain technology to power an economy in which more people, who do not have banking services, have an opportunity to thrive; also, the company seeks to contribute, as much as possible, to poverty reduction. To achieve this goal, and in order to see positive changes in the medium term, companies set the goal until 2023.

According to a statement recently published in different local media, the beer giant, which also owns Stella Artois, the Corona and Beck brands, among many others, has invested a significant amount, which still unknown, in a fundraiser of the Series A, with the aim of contributing to the creation of Blockchain-as-a-Service (BaaS) BanQu.

The BanQu tool was established in 2015. Since then, it has been working to connect, especially, rural workers, such as farmers, who often need more support to receive their monetary rewards and encourage themselves to work, feeling protected.

Said initiative aims to connect those, who work in the fields and that unfortunately often do not have banking services, with the companies and organizations for which they work in all the supply chains. This is where the participation of distributed ledger technology (DLT) or blockchain would come into participation to provide its contribution in this important productive sector.

Until now, BanQu has made it possible for these people to access financial services such as MTN and Airtel (telecommunication), through associated banks and mobile money providers. This increases the financial perspectives of these workers and would be the basis for the startup to contribute to reduce poverty levels.

Without Poverty by 2023

As reported by said startup, until now it has helped more than 200,000 people thanks to its initiative. It maintains its goal of removing 100 million people from poverty by 2023. As part of that work, AB InBev and BanQu previously partnered to participate in a pilot program that connected 2,000 farmers in Zambia with the mobile platform. In this way, those people were able to access the so-called modern banking. The project was subsequently extended to other countries, including Uganda, India, Brazil, Costa Rica, India, among others.

About this matter, Chief Procurement & Sustainability Officer at Anheuser-Busch InBev, commented: “After the excellent pilot performance of BanQu in our 100+ Accelerator, we are pleased to consolidate the partnership with Ashish, Jeff and the entire BanQu team, through a capital investment. Together, we are working to improve access to modern banking for thousands of farmers in underserved rural markets”.

Milikin added that this has made it possible to promote “inclusive growth” and contribute to the 2025 Sustainability Objective, as well as comply with the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations.

Among other details, the firm reported that BanQu will use the profit that comes from the Series A round to consolidate its existing operations and to help deploy its operations in China and Mexico this year.

By María Rodríguez

Kodak Unveils a New Document Management System Based On Blockchain Technology

Maria Rodríguez
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Kodak Unveils a New Document Management System Based On Blockchain Technology

During an event, the advantages of the blockchain technology were highlighted to streamline processes safely and store confidential information. The company seeks to create a platform that helps photographers monetize their work

Kodak Services for Business, the photographic industry company, maintains its interest in the base technology of cryptocurrencies. This company presented a document management platform based on blockchain that could help organizations achieve savings of up to 40% in production costs, by improving productivity and avoiding the loss of information.

This statement, which highlighted some of the advantages offered by blockchain technology to streamline and optimize processes, was announced during a two-day conference held in New York, according to the company in a press release recently published.

According to Kodak, this technology allows companies and governments to efficiently manage and keep confidential documents secure, as well as automating workflows and files to ensure that records can be accessed in real time. These characteristics would be functional in various development fields or in different types of industries, especially during the storage and handling of data.

During the event, other products meant to keep information protected were also shown. Among the tools of great utility and capacity that were presented is Scan Cloud, which allows users to process data wherever they are.

The creation of “smart cities”, taking advantage of different technologies, is another of the points discussed at the conference. The objective of these developments is to use the newest tools, including distributed ledger technology, to improve infrastructure and efficiency in the management of services in urban areas.

Following similar steps to Kodak last month, the Polish-British finance firm Billonwon a USD 2.1 million grant from the European Commission to promote the development of its own blockchain document management system.

The Benefits of Blockchain for Kodak

It is not the first time that Kodak refers to the advantages of blockchain technology. The company has used distributed ledger technology to establish databases before.

Also, the company recently partnered with RYDE Holding (a big data and AI-enabled image recognition platform, formerly Wenn Digital) to build a platform for image rights based on blockchain that would protect copyright and help photographers to monetize and distribute their work. The project was called KodakONE, a limited beta test that, allegedly, generated more than USD 1 million in image rights claims and that would work with Ethereum, Stellar and Hyperledger technology.

The interest of the company is not only in blockchain technology, but also in the development of digital assets. Kodak planned to launch its own token for instant license settlement, as well as the implementation of smart contracts for large-scale license management.

This asset would receive the name of KodakCOIN, an ERC-20 token (a technical standard used for smart contracts) that would use components of the block of chains. However, in February 2018, Kodak was forced to delay the launch to evaluate the status of potential investors; this was one day before the planned-initial offer of coins began.

The aspirations of the company are to monetize up to the remaining 80% that some photographers do not achieve to monetize by their own, given that, according to Cam Chell, Co-Founder of KodakONE, in the current photographic industry, even professionals can only collect the license rate of 20% of the market at most.

The Kodak developments promise to be at the forefront and take the photographic industry to a new technological era of promising and unknown advances.

By María Rodríguez

The Three Most Important Banks of Ireland Use Blockchain ​​Technology

Maria Rodríguez
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The Three Most Important Banks of Ireland Use Blockchain ​​Technology

It is expected that more Irish banking institutions become more involved with this technology, which is finding support within the country’s financial system

In recent reports published by the most important financial institutions in Ireland, it was announced that they use blockchain technology to control their operational and security personnel, specifically in the management of credentials within a security system created with blockchain technology.

For some years, these financial institutions were afraid of the changes that blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies could imply. This is due to a completely traditional management system that is not adapted, until now, to the one used in the crypto world, and that incorporating this technology into their financial system requires preparation and updating their services.

Despite these complications that arise in their traditional methods of financial management, they opt for the systematic advancement of technology, and these banks consider understanding the importance of staying on the cutting edge of innovation. It is for this reason that these banks have involved this technology among their management systems.

Currently, the Irish bank, the Allied Irish Banks (AIB), and Ulster Bank, have begun a pilot test of a system that will help track and verify data within the credentials of their staff, as well as information about their qualifications and other important aspects. It is known that these institutions will use the solutions of the Blockchain Lab Company, which comes from Deloitte in Dublin.

Regarding the aforementioned system to be implemented by their banking staff in the near future, it is known that the credentials will be stored in a digital wallet system that will have its support in the chain of blocks that the company provides. This will help improve significantly the online system from the bank. In addition, the Institute of Banking of Ireland is involved in this project, which ensures the correct operation of the system.

Regarding this matter, Mary O‘Dea, who is the Chief Executive of the Institute of Banking of Ireland,gave her opinion of the project. She was also enthusiastic about the implementation of the solution. “More than 23,500 members have a professional designation with the Institute of Banking and, ultimately, for us, it is about maintaining the highest professional standards for the benefit of clients that are served by the financial services industry”, she finished.

On the other hand, Pascual Donohoe, who is the Finance Minister in Ireland, said he feels very excited about the development of the project and considers it an excellent value to stay in the direct line of innovation. “I fully support the development and adoption of new technologies such as blockchain as a way to encourage digitization and innovation”.

It is expected that in the coming months more institutions will be attracted by this project, once the tests have been completed and the project is implemented in the banks that have decided to start using this technology. In this way, blockchain technology will not be used only in this specific sector, but it would be implemented in other fields. The idea is that more people adopt the confidence to involve technology in commercial matters.

By María Rodríguez

Important German Pharmaceutical Firm Develops Blockchain Care Network for Diabetic Patients

Maria Rodríguez
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Important German Pharmaceutical Firm Develops Blockchain Care Network for Diabetic Patients

Initially, this tool would allow serving about 25 thousand people, as well as storing and sharing the medical information of these patients quickly and safely

The German pharmaceutical firm Boehringer Ingelheim, one of the 20 largest companies in this sector in the whole world, decided to partner with Solve.care, the blockchain-based healthcare platform, to create a blockchain and digital assets project which store and share the medical information of diabetic patients, as it was announced by means of a press release.

The new health care system, based on the blockchain platform of Solve.care, is known as the “Diabetes Care Administration Network” and its main objective is to function as an assistant in the processes of coordination for the attention of these patients, in order to store the data in a reliable manner, as well as sharing information about the risks associated with diabetes, prevention, the symptoms it causes, among other important aspects.

Pradeep Goel, CEO of Solve.Care, said: “The Diabetes Care Administration Network will help bridge a knowledge gap by providing a platform which offers vital information on diabetes and cardiovascular diseases in an easily accessible manner. This is invaluable in the healthcare ecosystem as it allows patients to gain a better understanding of their disease while also coordinating their care needs”.

As indicated in the press release, this development would be in operation by the end of 2019 or before ending the current year. The statement of the institution located in Germany also indicates that, during the initial phase, it is expected that the tool allows to serve more than 25 thousand patients in the American accounting service firm Arizona Care Network (ACN). This new platform would implement the Solve.care coordination tool called Care.Wallets, with the aim to support people who have this disease.

Blockchain has already taken steps and gained ground in the field of health during last months. Recently, the global retail giant Walmart announced it joined the MediLedger pharmaceutical consortium, following four major US companies in the industry, including Pfizer.

Similarly, the Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) Association was also associated with an important project related to cryptocurrencies, the Tron Foundation. The objective of these two institutions is to launch a charity campaign to create awareness about Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and how is the lifestyle of those who have this health condition.

The altruistic project seeks to collect donations to contribute with investigations for the treatment of this disease and to generate a significant contribution in the search for the cure of the ALS, thanks to the technological developments that advance every day.

Blockchain in the health sector

Other important companies have considered using blockchain in the world of medicine. IBM formed the so-called “Health Utility Network”, which includes health organizations, health product providers and startups that wish to contribute to the growth of blockchain use in the health sector.

Renowned companies such as Change Healthcare, Hashed Health and Guardtime also seek to implement the transparency and efficiency of blockchain technology in the healthcare industry.

A few months ago, the Taipei Medical University hospital, Taiwan, also created a platform that uses blockchain technology to maintain, protect and facilitate access to medical records of their patients, in order to save time in the search of each medical case and provide, in this way, a better service.

Even the startup Bitfury announced the creation of a medical information management system based on blockchain, with the aim of contributing with medical research, based on the review of previous cases.

The benefits of blockchain go from the protection of information, the organization of medical records, the handling of sensitive data for research, and the treatment of clinical institutions data. In addition, this technology could manage the production and consumption of medicines, as well as detect disease patterns. The future of blockchain promises to be more than a cryptocurrency exchange system. It could be the new base of medical information and a friendly assistant.

By María Rodríguez

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