Start-up idea.
NAME: OIS(d)
FULL NAME: Object Identification System (Distributed)
SHORT DESCRIPTION: Users should be given capability to use their devices (phones, tablets, etc) to get sought-for information about their objects of interest (human beings, goods in stores, etc).
HOW IT WORKS FOR USERS:
You download OIS(d) app to your phone, set it up and connect. When you’re shopping for groceries, you take a picture of a pack of grapes, made by company A. App tells you, that no one ever accused this company of using GMO fruits or slave labor (features, which you checked as “Significant” while setting OIS(d) app). You like this pack and take it.
While shopping online for a shirt from company B, you find one, which looks great and is really cheap. Before proceeding with purchase, you use OIS(d) app. It takes picture of you screen, you locate the name of supplier. It finds out, that a great number of people consider company B to be responsible for serious human rights violations on its factories in SE Asia, including slavery. Your phone beeps. After thinking, you decide not to buy this shirt.
On a hot summer day in downtown, sitting in café and sipping soda, you notice a group of foreigners, who look familiar to you. Having nothing to do, you take a picture of them with OIS(d). Seconds later,
you understand, while you knew them. The oldest one was on TV last week, in a show about corrupt Third-world elites fleeing to your country to live in peace. After long consideration, you push “Upload picture, time and location as ANONYMOUS”. You’re too lazy to do anything more, but right now you have managed to give activist groups information, which will be used to extradite this corrupt ex-official.
WHY NOBODY DID THIS BEFORE: This project will require a great deal of work and, because of legal and political issues, software have to be continually upgraded (see below) to keep it ahead of authorities reach and closure.
WHY IT MUST BE DONE: It will be done sooner or later. Right now government agencies all over the world are creating tools to monitor citizen’s activities: social media control, CCTV, geo-location of gadget’s and so on. Corporations are also developing their own systems for getting information about people and things. Than all these software will trickle down to ordinary citizens. The first to use it will be criminals and corrupt officials. And in the end we will all live in Global Village with privacy only defense in alert citizens common action. We must give ordinary people the means for it.
With OIS(d) people will be able to connect together, create entries for humans/products/corporations, collaborate on filling them with information and use this data for activism, legal action and scientific research.
DEVELOPMENT STAGES:
1.0. Wiki-like centralized database with OIS(d) front-end software as a tool to search and edit it.
2.0. Distributed database (later we’ll make OIS(d) front-end software a part of DBMS; it will allow us to drastically rise it reliability and protection of valuable data, reducing the need for a common control center).
3.0. TOR-like connection for front-end software.
4.0. Wireless mesh network capability for front-end software (with fully implemented stages 1.0, 2.0, 3.0 and 4.0 we’ll create real-time reliable information network for people working under stressful conditions (Internet shutdowns)).
5.0. Image recognition feature for front-end software.