• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

'Skills nobody can take': Meet a 20-year-old with a 4.5 GPA who skipped college for technical school to land an 'AI-proof' career

2

Philanthropy leader at Warren Buffett and Bill Gates’ Giving Pledge says children of billionaires are pushing them to give their wealth away faster

3

China suffers another setback in effort to de-dollarize global finance as anchor in the greenback's dominance quietly exits Beijing's payment scheme

1

'Skills nobody can take': Meet a 20-year-old with a 4.5 GPA who skipped college for technical school to land an 'AI-proof' career

2

Philanthropy leader at Warren Buffett and Bill Gates’ Giving Pledge says children of billionaires are pushing them to give their wealth away faster

3

China suffers another setback in effort to de-dollarize global finance as anchor in the greenback's dominance quietly exits Beijing's payment scheme

Chinese Citizens Are Using Blockchain to Talk About Unsafe Vaccines

By
Carson Kessler
Carson Kessler
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Carson Kessler
Carson Kessler
Down Arrow Button Icon
July 27, 2018, 10:32 AM ET
Google source logo
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

With a national vaccine scandal underway, blockchain may provide Chinese citizens a new way to communicate censorship-free on the internet.

On July 15, the State Drug Administration (SDA) announced that vaccine maker Changsheng Bio-Tech forged data for roughly 113,000 doses of its human rabies vaccine.

During a surprise inspection of Changsheng’s facilities, the SDA discovered the forged data and ordered Changsheng to halt production of the vaccine immediately. There have been no reports of anyone harmed by the vaccine so far.

Shortly after the discovery, drug inspectors in China’s Jilin province reported that Changsheng had also sold 252,600 substandard diphtheria, whooping cough, and tetanus vaccines to Chinese disease control and prevention centers. This particular vaccine for infants is part of a compulsory government program. It remains unknown how many doses of the faulty vaccine officials have administered.

“Beast”—兽爷—was one of the first bloggers to write about the scandal online. The investigative article on the topic shortly went viral on the WeChat social network.

With more than 40,000 internet monitors whose sole job is to ensure information the government doesn’t want the public seeing stays off the internet, the exposé post was deleted within a few hours.

However, internet users also added the story to a blockchain where it would remain unreachable by these monitors.

An internet user sent themselves approximately $0.47 worth of the digital asset ether, posting the full article in the transaction’s metadata. Since Ethereum blockchain is a public, decentralized ledger, anyone can freely view the transaction—and read the attached article in the notes section.

This isn’t the first time Chinese citizens have utilized blockchain to voice concern.

In April, a student published an open letter detailing the threats she received after an attempt to obtain information from her university about a sexual assault case. After internet monitors swiftly removed the letter, students added it to the Ethereum blockchain, where it still remains.

About the Author
By Carson Kessler
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in


Most Popular

Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • TikTok icon
  • YouTube icon

    Latest in


    Most Popular

    © 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
    FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.