Digital assets have become the hottest topic of late, as the world we live in continues to transition into a more digital reality. However, since the inception of the internet, it has been almost impossible to prevent digital fraud and pirating, and protect digital property and IP from being reproduced. Now, however, with the advent of the blockchain, we can own, legitimize, and verify digital assets and properties in a way that was not possible before.
First, How Can I Own a Digital Asset?
Before we understand how to properly protect your digital assets, it’s important to understand what they are, and how you can ‘own’ them thanks to the blockchain. Watch this clip, and then we’ll go through the main points.
Ok, so here’s what you need to take away from that (with some additional info thrown in):
- The blockchain is a development in computer science. It is essentially a ledger, which can never be hacked, and once information is entered into a ‘block’ (for example, I sell you a digital asset) the information can never be altered.
- This means that we can now trace the ownership, and sale, of digital files and assets from their creator, through the ‘chain,’ to their current owner.
- The ledger, or blockchain, is decentralized and distributed, meaning to alter the information you would have to hack millions of devices, at the same time, across the world, within 6 minutes. A feat that not only requires more energy than the output of the sun but is impossible based on today's computing power.
- These digital assets, or files, are distributed as a digital token. This token is encrypted, and encoded with all the information pertaining to that asset, be it a digital collectible or artwork, a crypto-currency, or a digital representation of a physical asset such as real estate, oil, and gold.
Why Are Assets Going Digital?
There are a number of reasons assets are going digital, and they can vary depending on the industry. For a more detailed explanation, check out this link. For a more succinct summary:
- Distribution of assets can now happen instantaneously, and on a global scale, for a fraction of the cost.
- Digitising assets now means we can own a fraction of that asset, instead of the whole thing. For example, you might own 2/10ths of one house, and 6/10ths of another one, allowing you to diversify your portfolio and entitling you to the equivalent income from both properties.
- Digital assets create liquidity in markets that have traditionally been very immobile, for example, real estate, licensing and IP, and the collectibles industry.
- It removes arbitration/3rd party interference, fees, barriers to trade, and purchasing restrictions.
Asset Tokenisation: the process of digitising an asset by appending a digital representation of it to an immutable ledger — Kyle Forkey
So How Do I Purchase a Digital Asset?
Purchasing a digital asset happens in much the same way that you purchase a physical one. You find the asset you desire, there is an agreed price and medium of exchange (typically this is in some form of crypto-token), and the transfer is made. The blockchain then confirms the transaction, and records the new owner. The ‘asset’ itself can be a form of cryptocurrency, non-fungible token, or a token backed by a real world (physical) asset such as real estate.
The important part of purchasing a digital asset, however, comes down to security- obviously of your new assets, and also of the access to your accounts (wallet). This access is also known as the private key. For a quick refresher, the purchase/transfer of digital assets and files uses cryptography:
- Cryptography is a means of encoding or decoding information. In order for the network (blockchain) to confirm a transaction, it uses encrypted mathematical equations by matching your public and private keys.
- The ‘keys’ themselves are actually a string of numbers that point to an address/wallet, and identify the rightful owner.
- You need both a public and private key to access a wallet and confirm a transaction/purchase.
- The network (blockchain) is designed to automatically approve any transaction where the public and private keys match.
This means that anyone who possesses your private keys can access your digital assets. You NEVER want to reveal your private keys!
Protecting Your Digital Assets
If you feel overwhelmed at this point, don’t panic. Thanks to ECOMI’s technological innovations, protecting your digital assets is not anywhere near as hard as it sounds. However there are a few things you need to be aware of before I show you the simplest, and safest solution available today:
- Just because the blockchain is immutable, doesn’t mean that your digital assets are safe. Rather, the blockchain records ownership from one ‘address’ to another, not from one person to another. In fact, the very nature of the blockchain means that whoever is the current holder of the digital asset (or whomever holds the private key) is the owner of it.
- This means that if someone gains access to your private keys, they can simply transfer ownership to themselves, and you have very little power in the way of recourse.
Digital Security Without the Hassle
The good news is that ECOMI have just completed the worlds most secure, and easy-to-use hardware wallet, to store your digital assets and protect your private keys. In fact, by integrating the Secure Wallet with a smart phone application, the company have taken out the guesswork of how to secure your assets.
Rather, the private keys are generated within the device itself, and never leave it. The app is used to make payments, receive assets (as tokens), and store them offline- adding an immutable layer of protection to your new digital portfolio.
The good news? All of this happens behind the scenes. Using the ECOMI Secure Wallet is designed with you- the user- in mind, and is deliberately made to be intuitive and easy to understand, without the need for an extensive tech background. Watch this clip to see just how easy protecting your new digital assets can be!
To add to this security and convenience, the Secure Wallet is designed to integrate with the ECOMI ecosystem, to protect other assets such as digital collectibles. With the capacity to store more than 20 cryptocurrencies, as well as digital collectibles and all future iterations of digital assets, the Secure Wallet is a huge leap forward in digital security, and convenience.
As a bonus, ECOMI’s collectibles platform has an augmented reality feature that recognises the Secure Wallet, and displays your digital collectibles for you to interact with!
Get more information, 10% off and FREE shipping at the Secure Wallet website.
About ECOMI
ECOMI is a technology company based in Singapore and is leading the way in the emerging digital collectibles space. ECOMI offers a one-stop-shop for digital collectibles through the ECOMI Collect app bringing pop culture and entertainment into the 21st century.
The Collect app allows users to experience true ownership of premium digital collectibles. Through the app marketplace, users can obtain common, rare, or one-of-a-kind digital collectibles, share these across the social network service, and exchange them with the Collect community, all from the palm of their hand.
ECOMI sees digital collectibles as a new asset class which offers intellectual property owners the opportunity for new revenue streams in the digital landscape. Digital streaming, gaming, and in-app purchasing have become a multibillion-dollar market and the next to join this digital trend is the pop culture and collectibles industry.
For more information please see the ECOMI Collect Whitepaper or join the community on Telegram, Twitter and Facebook.
