2023 Fintech Trends Forum | Minister of Digital Development Tang Feng: Applying Web3 technology to build a more resilient society!

The Digital Development Department (MODA) was established in August last year, with one of its major responsibilities being to promote the application of digital technology and drive the country's digital transformation. Tang Feng also explained at the forum how the Digital Development Department will apply and integrate these blockchain technologies.

The Ministry of Digital Development (MODA) was established in August last year, with one of its major responsibilities being to promote the application of digital technology and drive the country's digital transformation. Tang Feng also explained at the forum how MODA would apply and integrate these blockchain technologies.

Applying blockchain, Web3, asymmetric encryption, and other technologies to policies is one of the missions of the Ministry of Digital Development. Minister Tang Feng stated that when it was first established last year, the Multiverse Department was already using Web3 technology to enable "cross-code interoperability," facilitating cross-platform communication.

Tang Feng pointed out that decentralized technology applications have a wide range of uses, such as the Smart Water Box. The Water Box detects pollution levels in water, uploads the data to a decentralized ledger, and allows upstream, midstream, and downstream companies to visualize the flow rate, direction of the stream, and the source of pollution in real-time using a cross-code interoperability protocol. Previously, the Taichung City Environmental Protection Bureau successfully monitored wastewater discharge from an electroplating factory in Fengyuan District using Smart Water Boxes.

Tang Feng said:

"This transparent and tamper-proof decentralized ledger saves manpower on audits. These difficult-to-distinguish pollution behaviors suddenly have a good way to prove whether these accusations are true."

This decentralized governance has also given rise to a new form of legal entity mechanism in the Web3 community called DAO (Decentralized Autonomous Organization).

Tang Feng further stated that decentralized ledger technology can be applied innovatively to new business governance. Of course, technology is neutral, and the same technology can also have negative developments. Tang Feng used NFTs as an example, where the technology originally meant for electronic signature verification of ownership was used for speculation.

This can be a harsh test for cybersecurity. Once a new technology lacks community supervision, it can easily become a breeding ground for fraud due to its tamper-proof and semi-anonymous nature.

Interestingly, the Web3 community has spent a lot of time using technology to turn this test environment around, such as privacy-enhancing technologies and zero-knowledge proofs, making these applications more resilient. The role of the Ministry of Digital Development is to be a pioneering unit within the country, applying these technologies first and building a more resilient digital government.

Tang Feng mentioned that the MODA website uses IPFS technology.

IPFS allows anyone to join the network, contribute their computer and hard disk resources, and as long as there are IPFS nodes worldwide that have the file, the website's homepage can still be accessed to obtain information.

Within the first hour of the MODA website going online, it was subjected to a DDOS (Distributed Denial of Service) attack, with the number being 23 times higher than ever before. However, because the website is built on IPFS's decentralized architecture, the site was never brought down even for a second.

In addition to applying these technologies, MODA also joined the W3C (World Wide Web Consortium) this year to represent Taiwan actively participating in international internet standards.

The next development direction for MODA is to formulate corresponding standards according to the needs of various sectors, promote these standards globally, and turn them into global resources.

Not only MODA, but this innovative force of Web3 can also extend further, such as the "Public Welfare Innovation, Recruitment 100" initiated by MODA, collaborating with various sectors to provide innovative guidance mechanisms, conduct software and hardware integration, and promote cross-domain cooperation in services including healthcare, transportation, education, and agriculture.

Moreover, MODA collaborated with the IP Content Lab and the Taiwan Blockchain Enthusiasts Association to create the first public welfare 4D NFT in Taiwan, inviting nine Taiwanese athletes to create the first public welfare 4D NFT in Taiwan, establishing an NFT digital content model.

Tang Feng stated that these applications are aimed at helping society understand that these technologies (decentralized ledger technology) have positive uses and serve as a guiding force. In addition, MODA is also responsible for bridging developers and regulatory agencies to reach consensus on regulations and create a positive cycle.

He summarized:

"The work of the Ministry of Digital Development is to empower industries to promote the adoption of these trustworthy Web3 communities by platform and cybersecurity service providers, start researching the technology, and thus diffuse this force."