Blockchain and Gun License Registration.

May 05, 2019

To be entirely honest, it’s a topic that some people won’t be happy with however it’s framed. There are people both sides of the aisle, some that will support the partnership of guns and blockchain and others who would oppose it with every fibre of their soul, with thoughts of their liberties and rights being trampled upon with each block in the chain.

Now this is regardless of whether blockchain could help with background checks, stolen weapons or whether it’s tracking guns from manufacturer to dealer to end user, all can also be readily improved through blockchain, which is already being done in a number of other markets that require accurate tracking to ensure safety.

Because however you feel about guns, not everyone has the right to own one. 

In Australia, you need a genuine reason to own a firearm, and self-defence isn’t considered a genuine reason and it’s a longer more complicated process that can take up to 28 days requires you to visit a police station and depending on what weapon license you are applying for, it can require another 6 months’ probation before you’re completely licensed and then wait another 28 days after that.

Now let's say if someone wanted to purchase a legal gun today in the US, they have to pass a background check which is a search of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS). Now this system is centralized it stores all the information in one place, making it vulnerable to hacks and recording errors, which according to the FBI’s own records, every year about 3,000 people pass the NICS background check who shouldn’t have.

But what if there was a better way? 

One that was more secure, had a quicker turnaround and made it harder for those people that shouldn’t have firearms.

Blockchain is decentralized, so the database that it operates on it would be less vulnerable to hacking and less susceptible to human error because each transaction would be verified and once the record was made it couldn’t be edited.

If you added every new gun registration license to the blockchain, this database could be checked against a criminal database almost immediately and those that shouldn’t have access to firearms would find it even more difficult to do so legally.

Also let's say whenever a gun was created, purchased or sold, the transaction and serial number would be recorded on the blockchain in an immutable, time-stamped manner. You could see the entire history of that firearm. But this is both unlikely and difficult to achieve currently, but it is a different story when it comes to gun registration.

No matter how you feel about guns, there should be a secure, fast and trusted way to make sure the people who shouldn’t have them, don’t, and also a quicker turn around for those that are legally able to have them.

So how does VeriDoc Global come into the picture?

VeriDoc Global has developed a solution that involves embedding a QR code on almost any item, with a unique digital hash inside the QR code. The hash holds a string of information that is then placed on the blockchain network for security, verification, and most important end-user validation. By using our free VeriDoc Global App on your smartphone, you can scan the QR code on the registration form and the app will show you the true document produced by the issuer, in this case gun registration.

Behind the scenes, the verification protocol uses VeriDoc Global Secured QR codes, encryption algorithms, unique hash values, and the blockchain to check that the document is authentic.

The VeriDoc Global app comes preloaded with Change of State (CoS) technology. This gives the ability to control and view all changes relating to gun license registration. Scanning the QR code can add time and location stamps along with any additional relevant information.

Download our free VeriDoc Global App from the Play or App store now. Scan the QR code in the image and try out the technology today using any smartphone.

It won’t solve all the issues with gun control, but we can make it harder for people to not fall through the cracks, using a more creative solution, and blockchain and VeriDoc Global could do just that.