Chain of weapons: control of the spread of firearms through the blockchain
According to the UN, there are more than 600 million small arms in the world, 40% of these weapons are in illicit trafficking, while the global volume of illegal trade in small arms is estimated at $ 1 billion per year. Every year, 200-300 thousand people die from the use of small arms in the world. As noted in the report of the Geneva Institute for International Studies Small Arms Survey, most of the small arms, about 650 thousand units annually, are trafficked from legal sources. Among the most common ways of the appearance of illegal weapons are theft from private owners, leaks from military and civilian warehouses due to improper control, illegal export or transit of weapons.
According to the United States Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Weapons Control (BATF), 93% of the barrels used by criminals are acquired illegally. In Russia, according to some estimates, the number of illegal weapons is about 5 million units. Where authoritarian authorities are powerless to drastically change the situation without violating the constitution and without resorting to tough restrictions, the blockchain comes to the rescue.
A startup called Blocksafe and its creator Kevin Barnes offer a solution to eliminate the possibility of unauthorized access to weapons, making it possible to track lost trunks and, more importantly, help reduce the degree of violence.
Recently, the authorities of the world powers are actively discussing the possibilities of regulating the virtual sale of weapons, in a desperate attempt to regain control of the situation. In a recent speech, former President Obama noted that "some arms dealers" sell their goods to "aggressive criminals" who buy stolen weapons "on the Internet without prior verification."
The US Democratic Party is trying hard to push through the law, according to which all firearms must be equipped with smart access control devices. It sounds great, except that such measures will allow the government to remotely monitor, control and, if necessary, restrict citizens' access to their own weapons and, like any centralized system, this model does not exclude the risk of burglary.
Kevin Barnes, a retired military and blockchain developer, proposes an alternative model in which firearm owners can independently choose whether they want to make their guns “smart” and how “smart” they are to prevent unauthorized access to their weapons, eliminating the centralized factor control.
For example, the police will be able to use Blocksafe to locate, manage, and control firearms belonging to personnel in real time. Owners of smart weapons will be able to use Blocksafe to locate missing trunks and even find out how many rounds of ammunition are left in the store.
The Blocksafe project already at the development stage received wide support from blockchain developers, as well as from arms manufacturers.
Blocksafe is a peering network that creates an infrastructure for smart devices used in firearms. Blocksafe uses the lisk + bittorrent + telehash protocol.
When installing a smart device on a firearm, the Blocksafe user configures the identification process and makes a list of users with access rights that will be stored in a local register. The identification process itself will largely depend on the device and manufacturer. All attempts to identify and other related actions will be recorded in the register in an encrypted form, in an anonymous manner. This information will be available and controlled only by the person who owns the encryption key, like a key to a bitcoin wallet.
There is statistics according to which a weapon is 15 times more often used against its owners, or it is triggered unintentionally rather than used for self-defense. The Blocksafe project is able to significantly reduce these risks, however, the authors of the project do not count on the forced widespread introduction of technology, even with the support of lawmakers. The concept of the project involves the voluntary consent of the owners of weapons on the use of technology. According to Kevin Barnes, the smart weapon market will grow only if the owners are free to choose the options to customize their smart gun or shotgun, subject to confidentiality and the absence of risks typical of centralized systems.
According to the US Attorney General Loretta Lynch, the greatest danger in terms of the illegal arms trade is the “shadow internet”. Dark Company research conducted by Fast Company, refutes this common misconception. Weapons are forbidden for sale in many illegal dark-web bitcoin markets, but even where it is allowed, it is not particularly popular - these are the conclusions of the researchers. Unlike drugs, weapons are easier to buy in real life. Nicholas Christine, a scientist at Carnegie Mellon University and his colleagues found that while marijuana accounts for one quarter of all sales on the dark web, weapons are so rare that they fall into the “miscellaneous” category, along with drug use, electronics, cigarettes, viagra and steroids.
As practice shows, the latest technology, such as blockchain and bitcoin, can increase the level of security and reduce the degree of violence, without the need for total control and prohibitive measures.
According to the United States Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Weapons Control (BATF), 93% of the barrels used by criminals are acquired illegally. In Russia, according to some estimates, the number of illegal weapons is about 5 million units. Where authoritarian authorities are powerless to drastically change the situation without violating the constitution and without resorting to tough restrictions, the blockchain comes to the rescue.
A startup called Blocksafe and its creator Kevin Barnes offer a solution to eliminate the possibility of unauthorized access to weapons, making it possible to track lost trunks and, more importantly, help reduce the degree of violence.
"Smart weapon" and blockchain
Recently, the authorities of the world powers are actively discussing the possibilities of regulating the virtual sale of weapons, in a desperate attempt to regain control of the situation. In a recent speech, former President Obama noted that "some arms dealers" sell their goods to "aggressive criminals" who buy stolen weapons "on the Internet without prior verification."
If we can customize the smartphone so that it is unlocked on the fingerprint, why not do the same with the weapon? If we have an application that allows you to find a lost tablet, why not create the same for a firearm? If a child is able to open a bottle of aspirin, you need to make sure that he can not pull the trigger with the same ease
- Barack Obama
The US Democratic Party is trying hard to push through the law, according to which all firearms must be equipped with smart access control devices. It sounds great, except that such measures will allow the government to remotely monitor, control and, if necessary, restrict citizens' access to their own weapons and, like any centralized system, this model does not exclude the risk of burglary.
Kevin Barnes, a retired military and blockchain developer, proposes an alternative model in which firearm owners can independently choose whether they want to make their guns “smart” and how “smart” they are to prevent unauthorized access to their weapons, eliminating the centralized factor control.
For example, the police will be able to use Blocksafe to locate, manage, and control firearms belonging to personnel in real time. Owners of smart weapons will be able to use Blocksafe to locate missing trunks and even find out how many rounds of ammunition are left in the store.
The Blocksafe project already at the development stage received wide support from blockchain developers, as well as from arms manufacturers.
Blocksafe is a peering network that creates an infrastructure for smart devices used in firearms. Blocksafe uses the lisk + bittorrent + telehash protocol.
When installing a smart device on a firearm, the Blocksafe user configures the identification process and makes a list of users with access rights that will be stored in a local register. The identification process itself will largely depend on the device and manufacturer. All attempts to identify and other related actions will be recorded in the register in an encrypted form, in an anonymous manner. This information will be available and controlled only by the person who owns the encryption key, like a key to a bitcoin wallet.
There is statistics according to which a weapon is 15 times more often used against its owners, or it is triggered unintentionally rather than used for self-defense. The Blocksafe project is able to significantly reduce these risks, however, the authors of the project do not count on the forced widespread introduction of technology, even with the support of lawmakers. The concept of the project involves the voluntary consent of the owners of weapons on the use of technology. According to Kevin Barnes, the smart weapon market will grow only if the owners are free to choose the options to customize their smart gun or shotgun, subject to confidentiality and the absence of risks typical of centralized systems.
Blocksafe is a peer-to-peer alternative to a centralized system of control and supervision, which governments will undoubtedly try to impose on us under the pretext of greater security, it eliminates the risk of hacker intervention, it eliminates the risk of unwanted intervention by centralized control bodies
According to the US Attorney General Loretta Lynch, the greatest danger in terms of the illegal arms trade is the “shadow internet”. Dark Company research conducted by Fast Company, refutes this common misconception. Weapons are forbidden for sale in many illegal dark-web bitcoin markets, but even where it is allowed, it is not particularly popular - these are the conclusions of the researchers. Unlike drugs, weapons are easier to buy in real life. Nicholas Christine, a scientist at Carnegie Mellon University and his colleagues found that while marijuana accounts for one quarter of all sales on the dark web, weapons are so rare that they fall into the “miscellaneous” category, along with drug use, electronics, cigarettes, viagra and steroids.
As practice shows, the latest technology, such as blockchain and bitcoin, can increase the level of security and reduce the degree of violence, without the need for total control and prohibitive measures.