Although Bitcoin was first created in 2008, most of us had never heard of it until 2017, when it made its first run up in price, reaching nearly $ 20,000 per coin. More people were then made aware of this revolutionary technology when Bitcoin made its second, historic bull run, rising from a value of $ 10,000 to $ 60,000 over a six-month period, between 2020 and 2021. With the advent of Bitcoin, Satoshi Nakamoto (pseudonym behind which the inventor hides) also gave us the blockchain. This distributed ledger technology essentially allows millions of people to contribute to the same Bitcoin network by lending their computing power for the purpose of verifying transactions while being rewarded in Bitcoin, an activity known as “mining”. Both of these technologies have been successful for various reasons, but basically exist due to the ability of the blockchain to bring a very high level of verification into the Internet age. This is due to the unique way the blockchain stores data - essentially, each new block of data connects to all blocks before it in a cryptographic chain in such a way that it is nearly impossible to tamper with. All transactions within the blocks are validated and agreed by a consensus mechanism between the entire network, ensuring that each transaction is true and correct. One of the largest sectors that need verification and greater security is ICT, particularly with regard to the supply chain and device management. With over five billion people using smartphones and the average user spending over four hours a day interacting with apps, smartphones are the number one target for hackers. So the obvious question is: why not bring the blockchain into this context?
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es, founded in 2019 by blockchain innovator Thomas Carter, is a company that finds opportunities to integrate blockchain technology where its unique capabilities are needed to create a more sustainable and efficient technology environment. Beginning in early 2020, TNS approached the Telecommunications Industry Association with a concept called Enhanced Mobile Equipment Identifier (E-MEID). The E-MEID is based on the MEID, a globally unique 56-bit identification number for physical mobile station equipment. Administered globally by the TIA, MEIDs typically show the manufacturer's code and the serial number of the equipment. The number is permanently affixed to the device and used to facilitate the identification and tracking of mobile equipment. The assignments are coordinated with International Mobile Equipment Identifiers (IMEI) to enable global roaming and harmonization between 3G, 4G and 5G technologies. The concept of TNS was to link a MEID to a blockchain specifically designed to support ICT supply chain security. If a MEID is linked to a blockchain, it is indeed possible to create a globally unique digital token that can represent any associated physical or digital asset. This token would be referred to as Enhanced MEID. "Tokenization" is the name of this process. When linked to a blockchain, MEID documentation capabilities expand to include the hardware bill of material (BOM), software bill of material and software correction activity. This additional functionality can improve the visibility of an organization's hardware and software supply chain, component provenance, and internal change management processes.