Recently, there has been massive speculation around cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin is in the news on a daily basis and even people with little technical knowledge have started participating in the discussion. While these newly created currencies are fascinating, it’s much more interesting to explore the underlying technology – blockchain. Blockchain has the potential to change many more aspects of our lives outside of how we exchange money. From real estate to automobiles, crime scene evidence to designer goods, we are just starting to realize the true impact this technology can have.

Before we go any further, let me provide a very high level description of what blockchain is exactly. Blockchain is a way to verify an object’s chain of ownership. With digital currency it allows someone providing a service to verify the currency used to purchase the service actually belongs to the customer. Blockchain uses sophisticated encryption practices that allow a digital signature to be calculated for every link in the chain of ownership. This enables anyone to verify the entire history of ownership for any given object. What makes blockchain even more interesting is the ledger of ownership is maintained by countless computers around the world. This completely decentralizes the system used to verify ownership. If a series of computers disappear completely, there will still be a record maintained by another set of computers. Even better, this decentralization prevents fraud. When a new link is added to the chain of ownership, all of the computers in the network participate in calculating the new unique link in the chain. This makes it nearly impossible to forge a fraudulent link in the chain.

While the most popular use of blockchain today is Bitcoin, there are so many other promising possibilities. Imagine tracking the ownership of real estate using blockchain. If you have ever purchased a house, you know exactly how unscientific the process is. The title company must search for any liens currently recorded on the property and verify the selling party is the actual owner. There is always the possibility the title company misses something, so they require title insurance which covers any mistakes or omissions. Now, imagine there is a blockchain including all the owner information, any mortgage information, and any other type of liens on the property. Even better, every link in the chain is verifiable electronically. The title company could instantly verify who has a lien on the property and if the person selling the house actually owns the property. The cost of title insurance would be significantly reduced or the whole concept could become irrelevant because blockchain makes ownership a certainty.

Cars also could leverage blockchain by allowing individuals to instantly verify the current owner and previous owners. Also, instead of using Carfax to determine if the car was maintained properly, dealerships could add to the blockchain any information about when the car was in the shop and what work was done. Boats, motorcycles, and really anything else which has a title associated with it or might require maintenance. Blockchain is a great solution.

Have you ever purchased designer goods? How do you know the product you purchased was not counterfeit? Again, blockchain to the rescue! Not only could you validate if the item is genuine but you could also easily determine how many people owned the item before you. This makes purchasing items on platforms like eBay and CraigsList more reliable. Not just instantly verifiable trustworthiness, but factual proof you are purchasing exactly what is advertised.

While blockchain technology is now becoming part of everyday conversations, its current use is still limited. However, the applications are vast and blockchain has the ability to change almost every aspect of our lives. These are a few ideas about how blockchain can benefit us, but this is just the beginning. Given our continued dependence on global commerce and online trading, blockchain offers a sense of security we have yet to experience. Our world will soon be redefined thanks to blockchain technology!