South Korea's Blue House petition system will become more fair, Seoul to launch blockchain petition system in March.

The Seoul government plans to launch a blockchain petition system on March 1st. The system aims to address issues such as hacking and fraudulent voting in South Korea's current online voting system, enhance the credibility and security of the online voting system, and realize the vision of "Democratic Seoul" returning power to the people.

Building a "Democratic Seoul" Based on Blockchain

In fact, the blockchain voting system introduced by the South Korean government is not designed for "elections," but more accurately, it should be called a "blockchain petition system." This system will allow Seoul residents to suggest changes to current policies to the government or raise new issues. Once a proposal submitted on the system receives over 1,000 votes, Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon must respond to the proposal.

The operation of the blockchain platform developed by the Seoul government is similar to the "Blue House Petition System" promoted by the South Korean central government in 2017. For years, South Korea has allowed its citizens to submit petitions on the official website of the Blue House (presidential office). When a petition reaches 200,000 votes nationwide, the government authorities must publicly address it.

However, the petition system does have serious credibility issues. Professor Yang Jun-jun of Kookmin University pointed out that even those with little technical understanding can engage in fraudulent voting by using different usernames and internet service providers. Yang Jun-jun stated:

"Upon entering the page, you will be prompted to log in using Naver, Kakao, Facebook, and Twitter accounts. Choose one, register with your username and password, then click 'Accept.' With just a few clicks, you can complete the petition agreement. However, if you change your account from Naver to Kakao, you can vote again. This way, you can perform four operations on one petition."

A petition system based on blockchain technology is expected to address these issues and realize the vision of a "Democratic Seoul," where public policy in Seoul is led by the people."Democratic Seoul."

Does Blockchain Petition Completely Return Power to the People?

Using blockchain technology to improve existing voting systems has been considered a false proposition by some, as while it can solve some issues in the current voting process, it may also create new problems.

Taking the Seoul petition system as an example, based on current information, the Seoul government has not specified the type of blockchain used in the system. Due to the involvement of identity verification, it is likely that Seoul government maintains a private chain, meaning that the government controls the voting results. Therefore, when the petition content contradicts the interests of the government authorities or powerful individuals, the public still cannot rule out the possibility of data manipulation by the government authorities.

However, it is undeniable that optimizing the current petition system with blockchain technology can indeed improve many issues, which may be one of the optimization projects that local governments in Taiwan can follow up on.

Related Reading

• AEternity to Conduct Blockchain Voting Experiment in Uruguay
• South Korea's Largest Telecom Company to Issue Digital Currency in Busan

Join our Telegram channel now for the latest in fintech news, blockchain insights, and industry examples!