Hong Kong cyber-activists continue their fight for free speech and are turning to blockchain technology to back up articles from the shut newspaper Apple Daily.
The pro-democracy publication was forced to shut down as it became embroiled in a national security law crackdown. It produced 1 million copies for its last printed edition Thursday, ending 26 years of journalism.
China-controlled news outlet Global Times hailed Apple Daily's closure, calling it a secessionist tabloid.
Now, the defunct publication could have another shot at life.
Cyber-activists are saving Apple Daily's articles on to the blockchain. Once they are on the digital ledger, the paper's articles will not be susceptible to censorship.
As first reported by Reuters, a 21-year-old anonymous activist working in technology began uploading Apple Daily articles to the decentralized file storage platform ARWeave.
In a status update page called Decentralize Apple Daily, around 5,000 pieces of content have been uploaded to the ARWeave Network, each with a unique hash for users to view on the blockchain explorer, the report said.
Backed by investors like Andreessen Horowitz, ARWeave uses a structure called blockweave to enable the permanent storage of files across a distributed network of computers.
"I'm not doing this because I love Apple Daily. It's what needs to be done," Ho said in a quote to Reuters. "I never thought that Apple Daily would disappear so quickly," he said.
The people of Hong Kong have previously resisted government censorship.
According to CoinTelegraph, blockchain technology has been used to archive content by public broadcaster Radio Television Hong Kong when it came under pressure by the government last month.
The use of a global network makes it very difficult for any content to be censored on the blockchain, as it is spread across a host of multiple devices with layers of security walls.
Tampering with content on the blockchain is easily identifiable and trackable. The system uses a digital key and any variations in the block's activity will alert the network.
Under the National Security Law, the Hong Kong government can block or remove content it deems as "subversive or secessionist."
Hong Kong officials said use of the internet will not be affected as long as it is within the boundaries of law.
Meanwhile, Ho's digital archive of Apple Daily stories is still in a beta phase and will not be officially available for a few months.
Apple Daily's articles on the blockchain reassures its readers they will still be able to access the tabloid's old content, even if the publication can't print them on paper any more.
