It is no surprise that blockchain/DLT has become such a hot button technology — it provides a secure transaction methodology that lends itself to a degree of automation. Security is a seminal benefit, as the names of the parties are pseudonimized, each block is authenticated across the network prior to being added to the chain, and the records are encrypted. Moreover, the blocks in a blockchain are immutable by design — they cannot be changed once authenticated and added to the blockchain due to the use of “hashing” algorithms (mathematical functions that essentially transform the data being hashed into a unique output of a fixed length creating a digital “fingerprint” of the underlying data) that order each block in the blockchain with reference to the previous block’s hash. These hashes are not amenable to being easily reversed, securing the entire blockchain as it grows. Of course, this is a very rudimentary explanation, but you get the basic point — it creates a secure, distributed database of information and transaction records. Read More
