Two Japanese tech giants, Sony and Fujitsu, have come together to create a blockchain-based system to help fight the massive influx of forged and fake documents in Japan.
According to local reports, the two companies started on a project that will use blockchain technology to stop increasing forgery of language ability forms by foreigners.
All foreigners in Japan are required to have a Japanese language ability certificate, which is presented to the Migration Bureau. This allows them to get the resident status to educate in the country. To get the document, foreigners have to take a Japanese language course for a certain number of hours, or to have sat for Japanese language proficiency tests.
Ideally, the certificates are issued by Japanese language educational institutions overseas and Japanese language schools in Japan. These certificates are aimed at helping foreigner have an easy time doing their day to day activities during their stay in the country. However, many have sought the easy way out by getting fake certificates. The two companies want to make use of Fujistu’s online learning system, and a blockchain developed by Sony Global Education Inc, a subsidiary of Sony Corp, to curb this problem. This new system will work by allowing institutions to register data and certificates issued to foreigners wishing to study the course.
This system is expected to make work easier for authorities when trying to get the authenticity of any certificate. Eventually, the two companies hope that fake documents will disappear from the industry.
Reportedly, Sony and Fujitsu will test their platform in March before organizing for real-world use in April. The experiment is planned to take place at Human Academy Co., which runs Japanese language schools in the cities of Osaka, Tokyo, and Saga.
The use of blockchain technology has spread fast Japan. According to a statement by Abdulhussain Mirza, Bahrain, the minister of water and electricity affairs blockchain technology has helped influenced the country’s economy and the cybersecurity space. He stated:
“Blockchain’s ability to protect user’s data is a true mark of progress, especially because it can be applied in different companies from different industries including cybersecurity.”
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