With all the media on fire with news about cryptocurrency prices, you may be wondering how this affects a common man. Right at the heart of cryptocurrencies and other digital currencies is Blockchain technology.
There are several industrial and administrative problems that technology can solve for the common man. He owns a small business but often feels a lack of transparency due to traditional methods of communication? Has he ever ended up with higher than usual medical bills? As a business owner, is it difficult for you to find legitimate candidates? These problems affect entrepreneurs, startups, small businesses, individuals and Blockchain technology seeks to provide solutions to make the life of a common man much simpler through simplified solutions.
banking
Banking in almost all countries is still heavily focused on paper-intensive transactions for any money transfer, record-keeping, or other back-end functions. Blockchain technology can replicate this in a digital format and create a decentralized ledger that allows not only bankers but also clients to access a single source of information. This system allows banks to eliminate the chances of fraud, as bankers can digitally verify documentation and proof of asset ownership on the Blockchain ledger, which can be accessed at any time in an unalterable format.
Identity theft is also a major problem in the banking sector, as citizens’ information is stolen and used to open fraudulent accounts for illegal activities. According to the Federal Trade Commission’s online complaints database, more than 13 million complaints of card fraud and identity theft have been filed, and 3 million of these complaints were filed in 2016 alone. Through a Blockchain system, customers can directly see all the accounts they have in their name and immediately notify their respective banks in case they detect any suspicious activity in their bank details. Some of the well-known examples include the IBM-backed Hyperledger Fabric project and UBS’s Utility Settlement Coin.
Health care
Blockchain technology can simplify healthcare in incredible ways and make medical data management much simpler. Making patient records widely accessible can make drug development research much more convenient and also reduces the implications of counterfeit drugs. Clinical trials and their results can be made available on a decentralized network, allowing healthcare specialists and researchers to conduct research and find solutions for better healthcare. Accenture is one of the largest companies that has begun to offer innovative healthcare solutions to the healthcare industry for secure and fraud-free transactions.
Medicare frauds can also be reduced through blockchain billing management as the billing system can be fully automated without any scope of intermediaries committing fraudulent activities. With more than 56 million people under Medicare as of 2017, more than $1.3 billion has been defrauded from the government through fraudulent activities by rehab centers and home health care services. Blockchain systems can effectively protect citizens seeking medical assistance from healthcare providers who overcharge for services offered through fraudulent billing practices. Centralized data not only helps medical professionals offer treatment based on patient and family history, but also eliminates the chances of a patient incorrectly remembering past symptoms or conditions.
Public records
One of the most important civic administration functions of a government is to record all information about its citizens. This includes information about individuals and companies regarding their assets and activities. Most of the recorded information is recorded in paper databases, making data management extremely difficult even in developed countries.
Blockchain-based systems like Ubitiquity can encrypt all public records into a digital ledger to prevent citizen data from being tampered with by fraudulent activity. Identity theft is a problem that can be very difficult for government to deal with, and digitizing all public information to make it tamper-proof can help prevent such instances of criminal activity.
Vote
One of the biggest limitations of the voting system in almost all countries is that, even today, voters must be physically present in the voting booths to cast their ballots and can make things difficult for people who need to travel on voting days. . More importantly, there is no way to verify poll results for the average citizen.
Blockchain development companies like Followmyvote are coming up with solutions that seek to make online voting a reality. It will allow citizens to view accurate information about ranking and poll results and various other statistics publicly. It also leads to safer voting for citizens of countries in internal or external conflict and criminal activities to force citizens to vote for specific candidates can be completely prevented.
business contracting
Companies of all sizes have a hard time finding the right staff. Through blockchain technology, it is possible for companies to verify the credentials of all applicants through a digital database. Blockchain technology can be applied to create a decentralized database of professionals with verified qualifications in a secure ledger that companies can refer to when hiring candidates. Learning Machine is a New York-based company seeking to address this issue by focusing on recording verifiable information about workers.
Tax or employment related fraud accounts for 34% of all identity theft as of 2016, and a blockchain system makes the hiring process for any company much more secure, as a company would only have access to valid candidates, which reduces the risk of hiring fraudulent employees. . It also helps applicants by speeding up the hiring process and helping them find jobs for which they are eligible and have a hassle-free application process.
The use of blockchain technologies helps both individuals and businesses, and also protects personal information while making important data publicly visible. While blockchain has the best application in cryptocurrency, its use can also be extended to other sectors to provide meaningful solutions to citizens around the world.