CBSA Blockchain Use Case Analysis 4 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A carbon credit marketplace wants to prevent double-spending of credits across multiple registries. How does blockchain specifically solve this?
- By encrypting all carbon credit data
- By maintaining a single shared ledger where each credit has a unique token that cannot be spent twice (Correct answer)
- By requiring government approval for each transaction
- By using AI to detect fraudulent credits
Correct answer: By maintaining a single shared ledger where each credit has a unique token that cannot be spent twice
Tokenizing each carbon credit on a shared blockchain ledger ensures a credit's state is visible to all parties, making it cryptographically impossible to spend the same credit twice.
Question 2: In a seafood supply chain use case, blockchain is used to trace fish from catch to consumer. Which data element is LEAST useful to record on-chain?
- GPS coordinates at time of catch
- Vessel license and certification numbers
- The recipe used by the restaurant serving the fish (Correct answer)
- Cold chain temperature readings during transport
Correct answer: The recipe used by the restaurant serving the fish
Restaurant recipes are not supply chain provenance data and have no impact on food safety, authenticity, or traceability — they belong in the restaurant's own systems, not on a shared ledger.
Question 3: A startup proposes using blockchain to manage a company's internal To-Do list shared among 5 employees. What is the architect's primary recommendation?
- Use a private blockchain for maximum security
- Reject blockchain; a traditional database or project management tool is more appropriate (Correct answer)
- Use a public blockchain for transparency
- Implement a smart contract to automate task assignments
Correct answer: Reject blockchain; a traditional database or project management tool is more appropriate
Five trusted employees sharing an internal tool have no need for decentralization, consensus mechanisms, or immutability overhead — a standard database is far simpler and more efficient.
Question 4: Which feature of blockchain is MOST relevant for a use case focused on audit compliance in financial reporting?
- Tokenization
- Pseudonymity of participants
- Immutable append-only transaction history (Correct answer)
- Decentralized application hosting
Correct answer: Immutable append-only transaction history
An immutable append-only ledger creates a permanent, tamper-evident audit trail that regulators and auditors can independently verify without relying on a single institution's records.
Question 5: An e-commerce platform wants to offer decentralized product reviews that cannot be censored or manipulated by the platform. What is the key blockchain property enabling this?
- Smart contract automation
- Censorship resistance through decentralized record storage (Correct answer)
- High transaction throughput
- Token-based incentives for reviewers
Correct answer: Censorship resistance through decentralized record storage
Storing reviews on a decentralized blockchain means no single entity — including the platform — can delete, alter, or suppress posted reviews, ensuring authentic consumer feedback.
Question 6: In a diamond supply chain use case, Everledger records diamond characteristics on blockchain. What primary problem does this solve?
- Automating diamond cutting and polishing
- Preventing fraud by linking physical diamonds to immutable digital records (Correct answer)
- Reducing the cost of diamond mining
- Enabling fractional ownership of diamonds
Correct answer: Preventing fraud by linking physical diamonds to immutable digital records
Recording unique physical characteristics (carat, cut, clarity, color, laser inscription) on blockchain creates an immutable identity for each diamond, preventing substitution fraud and conflict diamond laundering.
Question 7: A healthcare payer wants to use blockchain for prior authorization between providers and insurers. What is the MAIN expected benefit?
- Eliminating the need for medical coding standards like ICD-10
- Reducing delays by automating authorization workflows with smart contracts (Correct answer)
- Storing full patient medical images on-chain
- Replacing the EHR system entirely
Correct answer: Reducing delays by automating authorization workflows with smart contracts
Smart contracts can encode authorization rules and automatically approve or escalate requests based on verified clinical criteria, dramatically cutting the days-long manual review process.
CBSA Blockchain Use Case Analysis 4
A carbon credit marketplace wants to prevent double-spending of credits across multiple registries.
How does blockchain specifically solve this?