Verizon unveils 'Full Transparency' proof-of-concept tool built with blockchain tech

Telecom giant Verizon unveiled a proof-of-concept blockchain-based transparency tool for news releases on Friday.

Dubbed "Full Transparency," the proof-of-concept is described as " a blockchain-verified record of changes to its news releases."

"This initiative seeks to transform how the Verizon Corporate Newsroom publishes news releases by providing an authoritative record of changes to public communications," the firm said in a press statement. The firm framed it as part of a "responsible business plan" called Citizen Verizon, which it said is a broader effort to use technology "as a tool to improve communities, education and the workforce."

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Verizon said the project was developed alongside AdLedger, Huge and MadNetwork. 

“As a technology company that quite literally connects people to information, we are excited to bring Full Transparency to market — a product that, in its own quiet way, can help ensure corporate accountability and trust,” said Jim Gerace, Chief Communications Officer for Verizon in the statement. “We invite organizations across the world that prize transparency as much as we do to adopt blockchain-verified communication practices.”

Official news releases incorporating Full Transparency will be tracked if and when changes are made. Such releases or statements “can be treated as authoritatively reflecting what was intended to be released,” according to the company. The news releases published to the Verizon Newsroom will be secured using cryptographic principles, where subsequent changes will be tracked and contextualized.

About Author

MK Manoylov has been a reporter for The Block since 2020 — joining just before bitcoin surpassed $20,000 for the first time. Since then, MK has written nearly 1,000 articles for the publication, covering any and all crypto news but with a penchant toward NFT, metaverse, web3 gaming, funding, crime, hack and crypto ecosystem stories. MK holds a graduate degree from New York University's Science, Health and Environmental Reporting Program (SHERP) and has also covered health topics for WebMD and Insider. You can follow MK on X @MManoylov and on LinkedIn.