China used blockchain based digital evidence in criminal court

For the first time in China, blockchain-stored evidence has been used in Chinese courts. Chinese financial blockchain solution ‘Ant financial’ agreed with Shaoxing judicial department to store digital evidence on the blockchain. One such piece of digital evidence stored in the system was used in court, making it the first instance where such evidence has been used in a criminal case. The Head of Shangyu District’s Court of Appeal said, ‘The blockchain is a [DLT] that is tamper-proof, traceable and shared. The use of the blockchain for encryption and storage has been confirmed by the Supreme People’s Court as early as 2018, and there have been judgements in civil and commercial cases, but the application in criminal cases is still the first in the country.’