Microsoft Contemplates Piracy Strategy Utilizing Ethereum Blockchain
Software leader Microsoft recently released a collaborative research report with Alibaba and Carnegie Mellon University that studied a newly devised blockchain system to combat online piracy.
Titled “Argus: A Fully Transparent Incentive System for Anti-Piracy Campaigns,”, the report analyzes an advanced approach to protect content using a watermark algorithm,allowing content owners to know when privately owned content has been unlawfully used by tying it to a digital source.
Using Ethereum’s blockchain network, Argus allows digital information to remain totally secure.The system would be particularly useful for journalism or security matters, where sensitive or classified information can be protected from interceptions or hacks. However, as secure and thorough as this approach may seem, researchers argue that its effectiveness is dependent on the transparent nature of the Ethereum blockchain.
“We see this as a distributed system problem,” the paper stated, “In the implementation, we overcome a set of unavoidable obstacles to ensure security despite full transparency.”
Along with providing heightened security measures for digital property, the Argus system boasts safeguards to prevent content from being copied from hackers using fake names and multiple aliases.
“With the security and practicality of Argus, we hope real-world antipiracy campaigns will be truly effective by shifting to a fully transparent incentive mechanism,” the report stated.
No details have been released on whether Microsoft or other companies plan to use the Argus system in the near future, but will likely remain in focus as online criminal activity continues to soar.
Edited by Maurice Nagle
