Arizona
Lawmakers Set To Decide On Electronic Gun Tracking Technology
State Representative
Paul Boyner introduced House Bill 2216 last month in an effort to protect
Arizonans from imposed electronic firearm tracking made possible by new “block
chain technology.” The bill has passed the House and is now waiting on a vote
in the Senate where there is sure to be vigorous debate on the implications
such legislation would have on gun owners and law enforcement. With smart gun
technologies advancing at an exponential rate, 2nd Amendment
advocates are looking at ways to prevent abuses that might erode constitutional
guarantees.
A smart gun is a weapon
that incorporates some type of safety feature that prevents its use by any
unauthorized person. This has been approached using a variety of technologies
ranging from RFID chips, fingerprint recognition, proximity tokens located in
wearable accessories like rings or watches. While the goal of keeping firearms
from being used by children, thieves or against the owner is reasonable, the
state of current technologies is not without problems. Fingerprint sensors
can’t be used with gloves or may fail to recognize wet or dirty hands. Proximity
devices are only as effective as the care one takes in their use. That’s where
blockchain technology comes in. It basically serves as a secure, anonymous and
decentralized interface between the smart hardware on the gun and the user.
Let’s say you want to
secure a firearm remotely. Just use your fully-encrypted app on your smartphone
and it’s instantly protected against unauthorized use. Maybe you discover your
gun stolen. You can use the technology to disable it in the same way but also
to help locate it. A log of all attempted activity is automatically uploaded to
the network.
Blockchain databases
originated from crypto-currencies like Bitcoin where a decentralized or
distributed ledger is maintained to record transactions. The peer-to-peer
autonomous network model based on blockchain has inspired many other
applications like smartgun technologies causing developers to take notice.
Firearms fitted with a hardware sensor broadcast a transaction record to the
blockchain database whenever that particular weapon is used. The pending
legislation reflects the concerns of gun right advocates who see the new
technologies as having the potential to set dangerous precedents.
Consider the position
of the NRA. According to their website, the organization contends that although
they do not oppose the development of smart guns and the public’s freedom to
buy them, they do however oppose any legislation requiring their usage. The
dangers such laws might pose to 2nd Amendment freedoms is causing
indignation among many members who see the need to approach the implications of
new technologies carefully.
While blockchain’s
leger is encrypted and not housed on any server, many gun owners are worried
that it may be coopted to identify them or create a basis for some kind of
electronic database. With some smartgun prototypes being designed to connect
themselves to “the internet of things” many fear that they might be located
when using firearms or even, in the extreme, that it could be remotely
disabled. The current bill merely makes any individual’s participation with
such technologies voluntary. In fact, should the legislation become law it
would be a felony to require any person to “use or be subject to firearms
tracking technology or to disclose any identifiable information about the
person.”
Being touted as “the
biggest technological innovation since the PC in the 1970’s and the Internet back
in the 1990’s,” blockchain is revolutionizing how we interact in a world that
is increasingly complicated by interconnectivity. Boyner, who has received an
“A” rating from the NRA, is strong on 2nd Amendment issues and the
proposed bill working its way through the State Legislature reflects that
commitment.
Daniel Williamson
February 11, 2017
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