2020-05

How Blockchain can be used for Censorship Resistance and Voting Rights

In this episode of Silicon Valley Insider, Keith Koo’s guest is Douglas Horn, Chief Architect of Telos a decentralized blockchain network and founder of Goodblock a blockchain development company.
Throughout the show Keith and Douglas explain how Telos is an example of a decentralized blockchain network which means that there is no single organization or person that “owns” the blockchain. This is an important distinction because there is growing concern over the term “blockchain” and how the technology is being used since it is known for it’s “immutable” properties. An example of a centralized service would something like Google or Facebook where the company owns the platform and the entire user experience. In a decentralized environment, there is no single control and so the concern over a centralized organization doing things (like censorship) is mitigated. Keith and Douglas also go into detail about how decentralized blockchains are censorship-resistant and how they can be used for secure voting (although both agree that this technology will not beimplemented in time for the upcoming USA elections).
On this week’s Cyber-Tip, Keith talks about the U.S Treasury’s warning to all banks (via FINCEN) that cybercrime related to the pandemic continues to rise and what banks, organizations and individuals need to do keep safe.
On “The Pivot” – Keith and Douglas discuss how blockchain technology can be used to strengthen privacy vs. concerns that the technology can be used to breakdown privacy. Douglas gives several examples including how contract tracing can be done anonymously using Telos.

Securing Your Digital Assets and the Tesla Factory Re-opening

In this episode of Silicon Valley Insider, Keith Koo’s two guests are Ruben Merre, CEO of NGRAVE out of Belgium who discusses how to keep your cryptocurrencies secure and Mayor Lily Mei of Fremont, California who discusses the decision to re-open the Tesla factory.
In the first part of the show, Keith and Ruben discuss how there is a resurgence of interest in people learning about cryptocurrency due to concerns over the pandemic and fear of global “money printing”. They go over the concept of centralized vs decentralized platforms and how that is relevant to blockchain and cryptocurrencies. Ruben reviews how to safeguard your digital assets and discusses NGRAVE’s approach to securing these assets such as cryptocurrencies. They also discuss the concept of “true” ownership when it comes to digital identity and digital assets and how you can have 100% certainty of what you truly own.
On this week’s Cyber-Tip, Keith talks about a new security flaw affecting Windows, Apple and Linux machines based on Intel’s Thunderbolt architecture.
The show ends with a special appearance by Mayor Lily Mei who gives an insight into the decision to re-open Tesla factory and how state, county and city officials worked together with Tesla to come up with a solution and how other companies can follow suit.
Subscribe and Download to “Silicon Valley Insider” to find out more:www.svin.biz

Using Binance to Measure Your Donation’s Impact

In this episode of Silicon Valley Insider, Keith Koo’s guest is Jarred Winn, Senior Vice President of Charity at Binance, the world’s largest Bitcoin and cryptocurrency exchange by volume. Jarred discusses his focus on creating strategies for partnerships and philanthropic campaigns using Binance’s charitable giving platform.
At the beginning of the show, Keith and Jarred give a brief review of Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies, how they function and how to keep digital assets safe. They also discuss the role cryptocurrencies can play in serving charitable giving and philanthropic campaigns and how to measure the impact of those donations. 
Keith discusses how many non-profits are assigned independent ratings on their financial accountability to donors (generally 75% and above is considered an “A+” rating. Jarred mentions how of the $4 million dollars in cryptocurrencies that have been processed thus far via Binance, over 99.5% have gone directly for its intended purpose. Jarred gives examples of how global campaigns giving relief in Australia and Africa have performed and how interested organizations and donors can engage to use their platform.
On this week’s Cyber-Tip, Keith brings to light a renewed focus by bad actors in emailing phishing campaigns specifically targeting corporations that use platforms like Microsoft Office 365 or Google Enterprise.
On this Pivot, Keith and Jarred discuss the future of cryptocurrencies and their potential role in transforming financial accountability.
Subscribe and Download to “Silicon Valley Insider” to find out more:
www.svin.biz

Re-Invent Yourself

In this episode of Silicon Valley Insider, Keith Koo’s guest is serial entrepreneur Tony Lam. From Cisco to Shark Tank, Tony shares with his story from starting off as an I.T. Analyst at Cisco Systems, to his current project Omni Bev a premium ready-to-serve cold brew coffee.
But to really get to know Tony, we must go back to his start at Cisco and how one of his companies made it on to Shark Tank and ended up with an investment from Barbara Corcoran. Tony also about his other businesses and how one of them became the “official” wings of a major sports center. All these experiences set Tony up for his founding role with Omni Bev and how they are bringing premium cold-brew coffee directly to you.
Tony is a great example that it’s never too late to re-invent yourself. Given the uncertainty during these times of COVID-19, Keith shares his thoughts that now is a great to re-assess your personal situation and pivot to another career or business.
On this week’s Cyber-Tip Keith discusses the announcement that Apple and Google are joining forces to share data related to their contact tracing applications to identify and monitory COVD-19. Keith explains what “contact tracing” is and what the short term and long-term implications are.
On this Pivot, Tony Lam shares his top tips for entrepreneurs whether inside or outside of technology.