“Blockchanging Trust: Ethical Metamorphosis in Business and Healthcare”

The first chapter of the book “Political and Economic Implications of Blockchain Technology in Business and Healthcare” deals with the ethical consequences of a new trust paradigm for humanity based on a disruptive “distributed trust”.

Blockchain Technology (BT) is neither good nor bad, nor by no means neutral. This chapter explains why BT modifies the traditional compromises between privacy and convenience and between ownership and public rights, catalyzing access to information and digital inclusion that benefits citizenship and financial literacy. It will show new ethical possibilities as BT offers tamper-proof solutions to certify data accuracy, which is a crucial civilizational advantage in a time of fake news and political distrust. The chapter also highlights why BT is a double-edged sword, which can either inaugurate a trustworthy openness era or, on the contrary, reinforce data centralization and feed a lust for power, perhaps pushing society into a worrisome non-democratic path.

We know that Internet users’ data were made public and handled by Big Tech companies. However, people’s data, including their money, can now be cyphered and managed by either community-based consensuses, third parties, or the state. Hence, political stances regarding digital decentralization will make or break privacy, freedom, and democracy.

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