Why are blockchains used for IDs? - Episode 307 - by cryptohunt.it

Why are blockchains used for IDs?

Welcome to the Cryptohunt Jam, where we spend one minute a day explaining crypto. In plain English.

If you haven’t heard of IDs on the blockchain, that’s because it’s still a relatively new use case.

South Korea is already paving the way here. First, they equipped their military with blockchain-powered ID cards, and then a large university followed step.

If you used them, you wouldn’t know anything is different. You tap your card or scan a code on your phone, and that identifies you - maybe to access a building, to drive a military vehicle, to borrow books, or to take an exam.

So what exactly is the point then if it all seems the same?

Well, remember that a blockchain is essentially nothing other than a large digital file cabinet. But instead of being operated by one computer or one person, it is decentralized - meaning many computers have a copy of it and they all work together to store and retrieve data. This makes it much more resilient to attacks. And that’s a big deal in the military, where that kind of redundancy is important.

But blockchains also allow for privacy - a university test center doesn’t have to know a students birthday and address to let them take a test.

It will be interesting to see how these things develop: But as you can see, there are real reasons we would prefer blockchains to more traditional technologies. Of course that is not always the case - and we are here to help you figure out what’s useful, and what is just smoke and mirrors, just like we’ll do in the next episode where we’ll ask ourselves why Nike is launching an NFT store.

This podcast is produced by Cryptohunt.it, the easiest place to learn crypto. Copywriting is done by Arndt Voges, Social Media is done by Brett Holleman, design is done by Carmen Rincon, and my name is Christian Byza, Co-Founder of Cryptohunt and I am your host of this daily show.

Disclaimer: This podcast references our opinion and is for information purposes only. It is not intended to be investment advice. Do your own research and seek a duly licensed professional for investment advice.