Blockchain consists of the verification of data transactions, and encompasses all processes in which it is necessary to protect, accredit or distribute information.
Blockchain is a procedure by which information is shared in an unmodifiable manner, facilitating the recording of transactions and monitoring them in a network, quickly and accurately, which can only be accessed by members of the network with permissions to do so.
Its technology is based on the concatenation of data blocks, which record transactions in chronological order, and is produced through cryptographic processes that guarantee that new blocks can be added without replacing or modifying existing ones .
In this way, all network participants have access to the same information, since no participant can modify the information once generated. Every time a transaction or an information block occurs, the desired information can be recorded in it, these information blocks forming a chain as the information moves, chaining themselves securely and avoiding the insertion of new blocks between them, each block validating the information from the previous block, preventing its manipulation.
Transactions on the Internet in most cases are based on the trust of the participants, however, this situation can cause certain participants, taking advantage of their position of power, to act in their own interests, causing harm to third parties. With the emergence of peer to peer (P2P) applications, such as the BitTorrent protocol, it became possible to exchange data anonymously worldwide, however, the lack of trust was an inconvenience in the exchange of certain data. As a result of this, the computer scientist Nixk Szabo proposed Blockchain technology as a solution in 1997.
Later, the hacker Satoshi Nakamoto, using this approach and existing technologies, such as the aforementioned P2P, presented a cryptographic procedure that concatenated blocks of data without the possibility of being modified.
Blockchain technology is based on the concept of a distributed, public and decentralized registry, so that a network supports a set of data and each point on the network has a copy of that set of data . When a change occurs in the state of the data, each replica of each of the participating nodes is synchronized with the latest version of the blockchain.
The implementation of this technology would facilitate payment transactions, capital market movements, contracts, certifications, copyrights, patents and registrations, which has sparked interest in sectors such as real estate, healthcare, or insurance, allowing many of its processes to be carried out without the intervention of banks, notaries, administrators or other state institutions.
The blockchain has great potential for applications in other areas, in addition to cryptocurrencies, which have been appearing in an escalating way, it is from 2008 when the functioning system of Bitcoin was revealed, first Decentralized digital currency, not regulated by any banking entity or official body.
The use of this technology will guarantee the necessary communications in the Internet of Things (IoT) in the future, allowing devices to communicate with each other in a secure and reliable way.
Some other interesting applications of blockchain could be;
Improving the management of supply chains by recording data such as the origin of products, transport conditions and transaction history, helping to improve their transparency and efficiency.
The security, guarantee and transparency of electronic voting, or the creation of secure and reliable digital identity systems. It would also be of great help in hospitals to guarantee the security and confidentiality of patients’ medical records, and the traceability of treatments provided, where, when and prescribed by whom.
