Please describe your proposed solution
<u>The problems</u>
The rising need for enhanced security on products like premium spirits, cosmetics, luxury fashion, and prescription drugs stems from the ongoing fight against increasingly sophisticated counterfeiters. The United Nations agency leading the charge against transnational organized crime highlights the gravity of the situation: "The production and sale of counterfeit goods is a global, multi-billion-dollar issue with significant economic and health consequences for governments, businesses, and consumers."
The global counterfeit market has ballooned, doubling from $200 billion in 2008 to $509 billion in 2019—amounting to 2.5% of global trade, according to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Counterfeiting on this scale leads to job losses in manufacturing, endangers the lives of consumers purchasing food and pharmaceuticals, and denies innovators the rightful benefits of their work.
<u>The solution:</u>
We make a special seal that knows if it has been tampered with. We adds to this an encrypted, auditable link between the seal and the full manufacturing history of the specific product to which the seal is attached. Users can check the history using a free app on their phone that can instantly verify a product’s authenticity.
The seal
A wafer-thin label with a near-field communication (NFC) chip can be affixed to products, incorporated into cards, or embedded within items or their packaging. For instance, it can be integrated into a bottle cap or sewn into a handbag. You might recognize the NFC logo from bank cards. This technology enables devices to share information by simply touching or bringing them close together. Similar to the microchips used in pet identification, the smart seal requires no power, remaining dormant until activated by a reader. The reader's signal generates a small electric current in the chip's antenna, providing enough energy for the chip to transmit its stored data.
The blockchain
Every item is associated with a unique entry on Cardano. That entry cannot be altered, but can be read easily, and can be used as part of an auditing system. Each entry comprises the cryptographic hash of the tag’s identifier and links to the product metadata. The metadata, including images, is stored off-chain.
The checking process
If you have a smartphone, you will be able to download the our app from the relevant online store. This application uses a phone’s NFC reader to read the chip and look up the product information on Cardano. Simply touch the phone to the product, and know at once if the product is genuine and learn about its history.