A Taiwanese blockchain technology firm has joined forces with journalists to combat digital deception ahead of India’s upcoming general election.
Numbers Protocol, known for its involvement in the 2020 US presidential election and the January 2024 Taiwan presidential elections, is gearing up for the Indian general election starting April 19. The company is collaborating with news outlets and photojournalists to capture on-location content, which will then be uploaded onto a blockchain platform using Numbers Protocol’s suite of tools, including Capture Cam and Capture Dashboard.
These tools are designed to bolster the credibility of digital media by leveraging artificial intelligence to detect potential manipulation attempts. In addition to professional journalists, civil society organizations are invited to contribute using the Capture application.
The platform automatically associates user-generated content with provenance data, enabling media organizations to efficiently verify its authenticity. Numbers Protocol co-founder Timmy Yang explained the company’s approach to detecting deepfakes and manipulated media. He stated that all content submitted undergoes a blockchain registration process, allowing it to be uploaded to a verification engine powered by an AI model. The engine compares the content to a database of similar content to determine its trustworthiness.
Each piece of content is assigned a unique identifier, or Nid, generated using the ERC-7053 standard. This identifier corresponds to the content’s hash, ensuring that any alteration to the original content results in a different hash and Nid. Yang emphasized that the verification engine will be accessible to the public and is actively collaborating with civil society groups and the community in India.
To maintain impartiality, the selection process for partnering journalists and media organizations is conducted in a strictly unbiased manner. Yang highlighted Numbers Protocol’s decentralized network, stating that collaboration opportunities are open to all journalists and media outlets.
The provenance records created verify the integrity of digital content and can also serve as a mechanism for photojournalists to monetize and license their work. Overall, Numbers Protocol aims to provide a comprehensive picture of content provenance to ensure transparency and combat digital deception during the Indian general election.