On March 18, Attestiv, a agency combating digital fraud and deep-fakes utilizing blockchain expertise, introduced that it had secured funds exceed
On March 18, Attestiv, a agency combating digital fraud and deep-fakes utilizing blockchain expertise, introduced that it had secured funds exceeding $2 million in a seed providing.
Cointelegraph not too long ago spoke to Attestiv’s CEO, Nico Vekiarides, to research his ideas on blockchain’s position in combating pretend information and digital fraud within the insurance coverage trade.
Cointelegraph: Can we get an summary of how the Attestiv platform works?
Nicos Vekiarides: Attestiv gives authenticity for digital photographs, movies, and paperwork by registering a fingerprint to a blockchain when a digital asset is captured.
Whereas it doesn’t comprise the asset itself, the digital fingerprint securely accounts for the entire asset content material and key metadata corresponding to timestamp and placement. It additionally consists of different non-compulsory attributes corresponding to consumer or context-sensitive data. At any level sooner or later, the asset could be in contrast in real-time towards the fingerprint within the ledger to find out whether it is altered in any method.
Behind the scenes, the total course of includes AI, heuristics, and even forensics to assist monitor and decide authenticity, chain of custody, and even perceive slight modifications, reformatting, resizing, and many others. As a result of we’re ledger-agnostic, we work with each private and non-private blockchains or ledgers, and can be saying companions quickly.
CT: What are some functions for the Attestiv platform?
NV: Our preliminary use circumstances deal with the insurance coverage ecosystem, the place there are quite a few stakeholders who don’t all the time share a typical system or belief.
Our clients vary from insurance coverage brokers, adjusters, carriers and even regulation enforcement. The insurance coverage trade already faces $30-$40B in property & casualty fraud within the US alone, (in response to the FBI).
With digital transformation and self-service cell consumer interfaces both in roll-out or on the horizon, there’s a rising must detect and forestall fraud, notably based mostly on latest developments in AI-based picture and video enhancing instruments — which can be accessible to just about anybody.
CT: Are there explicit initiatives that parts of the $2 million elevate has been designated in the direction of?
NV: Completely. We’re increasing our perceptual fingerprinting expertise to cowl extra use circumstances, corresponding to video that has been redacted, transcoded or lossy. We’re constructing forensic expertise that works in tandem with our blockchain-based tamper prevention. Lastly, we’re creating optimum consumer experiences for our shoppers both by means of apps or APIs that seamlessly combine into current functions.
CT: Are you able to touch upon the position of blockchain expertise in combating pretend information?
NV: Blockchain can play an enormous position in combating pretend information to the extent the trade is keen to undertake a brand new normal for capturing photographs and movies.
To some extent, the strains get blurred when editorializing enters the image — and there are specific situations the place the very best we will do is create a provable endorsement of a information article, relatively than show its authenticity.
Social media has been scrambling to create order round this house, however laws round deep-fakes are nonetheless in early formative phases and, fairly frankly, evolving frequently. As an example, what constitutes satire vs. pretend information can typically be perceived otherwise by completely different folks.
We’ve realized pretend information could be very problematic throughout a pandemic. Early on, a video purportedly displaying the Wuhan market the place the COVID-19 pressure materialized was debunked and located to be shot someplace within the Philippines. However the fact emerged after a major quantity of sharing.
Clearly individuals are extra susceptible and extra prone to imagine photographs, movies, or print when they’re in a panic. With the ability to discern between what’s actual, what’s pretend, and what’s opinion is essential below these circumstances.