In the digital realm of non-fungible tokens (NFTs), commonly used to make digital Art ownable, there’s some cheeky Ukrainians messing with Russian minds:
Artists from the M81 Studio retooled a post-capture photo of [former Ukrainian President and Russian-leaning] Medvedchuk into what they called “Warhol-style” pop art. Proceeds from the sale of the “Kremlin agent Medvedchuk for sale” NFT — the top bid was $1,548 as of early Thursday — will be used to support Ukraine’s defense efforts, the studio said.
“We are used to Medvedchuk being corrupt, but finally, he is being sold to benefit Ukraine, and not for his own enrichment,” it added. [WaPo]
It’s cute, but not to my taste. Or my computer wallpaper. Or my physical walls.
Yaya J. Fanusie on Lawfare has a report on sinister developments involving China and, yes, NFTs:
NFTs are central to the potential new iteration of the internet—what some in the tech space refer to as Web3—that China seeks to oversee. Web3 is loosely defined as a system where online applications run on decentralized software and where users control and share their data via blockchain technology platforms, allowing greater interoperability, efficiency and business innovation. Web3 is an aspirational concept, not a concrete blueprint, and it has become a buzzword pushed by blockchain enthusiasts amid billions in venture capital funding. NFTs are key to the idea of Web3 because they serve as verifiable digital ownership of unique assets. When someone purchases an NFT, they have computer code tying the NFT to their digital wallet. Essentially, an NFT is a digital receipt. The NFT ownership is recorded on a blockchain. Anyone can view the ownership history of the asset and the owner can transfer that ownership to another wallet holder, as the result of a payment or some other condition that can be programmed onto the blockchain. As economies get more digitized and move toward Web3, there will be greater need to build software applications around digital ownership. Chinese officials are not publicly using the term Web3, but the Blockchain-based Service Network (BSN)—a blockchain development project overseen by China’s State Information Center—is investing in the idea that the future internet will require decentralized apps, with NFTs as a cornerstone of this future.
According to this model, we should be seeing efforts to make the registration of websites with the BSN a normal part of bringing up a website. If this doesn’t seem likely, remember that the Internet is not the Wild West; if you want a domain, you don’t just declare that it’s yours, you have to buy service from a DNS service, which costs money, and registers you so that you’re findable.
So registering with “the authorities” is not an abnormal concept.
However, why you should have to talk to BSN is far less apparent, but how many folks will figure that out? Even experienced non-programmers may be taken in by a well-engineered advertising program by the Chinese.
It’s a good article by Fanusie. Go read the rest of it.
Keep a weather, or even skeptical, eye out when it comes to new technologies.
