On: $560M Powerball Winner Can Keep Her Name Private, Judge Rules

[bennyg]

This seems like a decent application of the Blockchain.

[tylersmith → bennyg]

There is no "the Blockchain". Which properties of a blockchain do you think would help with this situation?

[andrestan → tylersmith]

The magical part where it solves all of our problems with magic.

[currymj → tylersmith]

no, finally, for once, this is actually a real application of the blockchain!

specifically any that has support for zero-knowledge proofs so that transactions are actually anonymous.

you could have a bunch of people buy lottery tickets by sending currency to a smart contract, and then have it transfer the money to a random winner's address, and make the winner's address available only to the holder of the lottery contract's private key.

[lostlogin → currymj]

To an outsider this wouldn’t look that different to money laundering or some sort of large drug deal or arms trade.

[icebraining → currymj]

How would you verify that the holder of the lottery contract would actually send the prize to that address?