As reported by King’s College London on Monday, the university’s Centre for Science and Security Studies (CSSS) suggests that using blockchain technology would help parties to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty build trust and make dismantling nuclear weapons more “safe, secure and reliable.” The report titled “The Trust Machine: Blockchain in Nuclear Disarmament and Arms Control Verification” is aimed to provide policymakers a non-technical look at how blockchain could help them conform to the requirements of nuclear disarmament verification.
Blockchain can also offer for the dismantling data management process.
Among the specific benefits the blockchain technology can offer for the dismantling data management process, the report’s authors list “an immutable, encrypted record of chain-of-custody for treaty-accountable items,” allowing third parties to verify the disarmament without actually seeing the data. Another is a “cryptographic escrow” for national declarations allowing sensitive data to be released in a phased manner. The team, which was led by CSSS Research Associate Dr. Lyndon Burford, states that blockchain could provide a secure data platform for location sensors and environmental monitors. This could enable real-time monitoring at remote sites, “automatically alerting participants to potential treaty violations,” the report further suggests.
Lawmakers across countries acknowledge the potential of blockchain.
With governments unwilling to expose sensitive data concerning nuclear weapons, Dr. Burford said nations “often lack sufficient trust in each other to cooperate on such measures.” The report’s title reflects the possibility that blockchain could be a tool to build that trust by offering an encrypted, tamperproof way to manage the data around warhead dismantle. In the last few years, governments around the world have acknowledged the potential of blockchain technology. Several countries are actively utilizing the technology in various fields including, healthcare and logistics.
