7 ms·
How is this specific to blockchains compared to any other kind of append-only book-keeping?
by SCdF 8y ago
How is this specific to blockchains compared to any other kind of append-only book-keeping?
- Klathmon 8y agoBecause blockchains have what most other append-only systems don't, a mathematical requirement that the data NEVER change in order for the system to continue running. In an append-only system the enforcement comes from the software running around the data, if you need to you can modify the data in the past, and tell the software to just pretend it wasn't changed. You can't do that with a blockchain without throwing the whole thing away, so it brings into question what happens when legally you MUST remove information.
- petertodd 8y agoA good way to explain it is with a blockchain the math guarantees that you'll be able to detect modifications to the data, or if some data is missing, the potential of modifications. But even with a blockchain, the solution is the same: build an "escape hatch" into the validation software that allows certain kinds of data modifications and/or deletions to be ignored. The only difference is with a blockchain you'll have stronger guarantees that auditors will be able to detect if that has in fact happened. It is true that certain types of blockchain cryptographic structures can greatly limit the granularity of those options. But no-one actually uses those types of blockchains (namely chains without per-block merkle trees), so that point is moot.