Explained: Blockchain

You’ve come across people on social media and in real life talking about the growing trend of blockchain. So what exactly is Blockchain?

Blockchain is a type of database that is used to store information. As compared to a database where information is usually stored in a tabular format, data in a blockchain is stored in the form of blocks. Each block has its own set of data that has a specific limit of storage. Once the storage is filled with data it gets chained to the previous block in the blockchain. Data is stored in chronological order and once the data is uploaded to a block it cannot be changed or modified.

Blockchain is generally used as a ledger for transactions, but other information can also be recorded in it.

Is Blockchain safe?

Since Blockchain is a decentralized database and is managed collectively by multiple participants, it is known as DCT or Distributed Ledger Technology. Transactions that are recorded become immutable since blockchain is a type of DLT. In the blockchain, every new transaction is added at the end which makes it very difficult to go back and alter the contents of the block without the consensus of the majority. Blockchain uses its hash along with the timestamps of the transactions. Hash codes are created by maths functions that turn the digital transactions into a string of numbers and letters and are easily identifiable. If the information on it changes, it changes the hash codes as well. Since any change in information is easily identifiable blockchain becomes the safest way to store data as compared to other databases.

How Blockchain is used now?

Since the inception of Blockchain, it was mainly used to store data about monetary transactions. But today Blockchain can be used to store various types of data, and many companies have already incorporated Blockchain to store data including Walmart, Pfizer, AIG, Siemens, Unilever, and a host of other companies that are getting involved in Blockchain. For example, IBM has created its Food Trust blockchain to trace the journey that food products take to get to their locations.

A variety of projects are also looking to implement blockchain technology. One good example is that it can be used in democratic elections to record votes, which can also lead to fewer frauds in elections. Blockchain can be used in multiple spaces like banking and finance, healthcare, currency, records of property, supply chain management, etc.

What’s the future?

Since the introduction of Blockchain in 1991 as a research project, Blockchain has seen its fair share of public scrutiny along with businesses speculating about the capabilities of blockchain technology and where it’s headed in the future. With many practical applications under its belly, Blockchain is booming and becoming a very valuable and reliable source of storing and recording data as it is more accurate, efficient, secure, and cheap with fewer middlemen.

As we head into the future of technology and Blockchain, we can surely see a rise in the use of Blockchain in various Business and Government operations.