Blockchain-Enabled Security: Revolutionizing Data Protection

By: Jampula Navaneeth1

1Vel Tech University, Chennai, India

2International Center for AI and Cyber Security Research and Innovations, Asia University, Taiwan Email: navaneethjampula@gmail.com

Abstract

Data protection has become one of the biggest issues which have seen the emergence of blockchain solutions that enhance decentralization, transparency, and security. Existing security systems have problems of centralization and cyber threats but blockchain properties do not have these problems because of forming distributed database. In this article, the properties embedded in the concept of blockchain, which include change history, cryptographic security, and smart contracts are analyzed to demonstrate how they enhance the protection of information in different sectors like health services, banking and finance, and SCM. All the same, one can only imagine the opportunity that blockchain has for guaranteeing secure data as the world goes forward.

Keywords: Blockchain, Security, Cryptography, Smart Contracts

Introduction

A business’s data is one of the significant and important resources in today’s computerized environment and is a highly attractive goal for malicious hackers, intruders and fraudsters. Legacy security solutions while becoming more features packed still employ logically centralized philosophies that inherently have single points of failure and internal risks. The conventional approaches to project management hence lack the securities that come with blockchain, a decentralized and immutable technology [1]. In essence, blockchain is a decentralized record keeping system that disseminates data across several computer nodes and encrypts it with the most complicated method to provide for maximum security and audibility. This article discusses how blockchain security is also bringing significant change in supporting industries needed for the protection of information as it is exchanged and stored securely [2].

What is Blockchain?

In simple terms, blockchain is an excellent way of distributed ledger that make it possible for the data being shared in many systems that all the participants involved have an equal view of. The block, which is used to represent each piece of data, points to the next one in the chain and it can never be altered [3].

Figure 1: Blockchain security process

Decentralization: The Key to Enhanced Security

Traditional databases also act independently; they are prone to hacking, data breaches, internal threats, and other related vices. While in blockchain, data is distributed across a network of nodes, which are computers. This decentralization makes it far from possible for an attacker to saturate the whole network because no single point governs the network. To change some piece of data, the hacker would have to compromise the majority of the nodes and this is almost utterly impossible in a large and very healthy blockchain network [4].

Immutable and Transparent data

However, one of the best features of a blockchain is that it is a permanent, unalterable record. One of the main features of blockchains is that data cannot be altered once it has been written, and if it is altered, the change is recorded. This makes all the transactions open for the outside world and in the event of any fraud or manipulation this would be very hard to do as all records are already public [5].

For companies in such sectors as healthcare, finance, and supply chain, exercising constant, tamper-proof record-keeping of information is central to industry compliance.

Cryptographic Security

The data is safe under the employment of advanced cryptographic systems that exist in blockchain technology. Every single operation that is performed within the distributed ledger is encrypted and receives the corresponding cryptographic hash. This guarantees that if ever there is alteration of the data, the network would identify it instantly, thus minimizing the incidence of the data being altered.

Furthermore, cryptographic keys used during the validation and additions to the participants in the network are only eligible entities that can participate in the adding or validation of transactions. This helps to greatly minimize the instances of the compromise of wrongfully given access to important information [6].

Smart Contracts: The digital, Safe Payments

The smart contract is considered among one of the most radical ideas of blockchain technology. These are smart contracts where terms of the agreements are ingrained directly into code [7]. Smart contracts also self-execute contracts when certain parameters have been met meaning there are no middlemen and hardly any chances of errors.

As for the data protection, privacy rules may be coded into smart contracts and data processing can only occur according to given conditions. Which is highly beneficial in fields which require extra personal data security like for example medical or banking fields [6].

Challenges and Future Outlook

However, the breakthrough technology of blockchain is not without its drawbacks in regards to improving data security. The technology is still young and even though the technology is available in large networks the scalability to accommodate large networks is still limited to a degree [3]. Finally, it must be noted that the implementation of blockchain with legacy systems and existing legal frameworks involve architectural cognisance and planning [8].

Nonetheless, the future of blockchain based security has shown promising signs. Over the past years, the technology has started to develop, and different industries in various countries are integrating blockchain solutions to ensure the protection of data and transactions [1].

Conclusion

Blockchain security is revolutionizing the protection paradigm in data security systems. Blockchain relies on decentralization, cryptography and immutability to offer optimal structures for protecting this information in the new world of digital environments. With the understanding of its prospects growing in more industries, blockchain is emerging as a key part of contemporary cybersecurity that could redefine the ways data protection is conducted in the age of global network interconnectedness.

References

  1. A. Deshmukh, N. Sreenath, A. K. Tyagi, and U. V. Eswara Abhichandan, “Blockchain Enabled Cyber Security: A Comprehensive Survey,” in 2022 International Conference on Computer Communication and Informatics (ICCCI), Jan. 2022, pp. 1–6. doi: 10.1109/ICCCI54379.2022.9740843.
  2. F. Ayaz, Z. Sheng, D. Tian, and V. C. M. Leung, “Blockchain-Enabled Security and Privacy for Internet-of-Vehicles,” in Internet of Vehicles and its Applications in Autonomous Driving, N. Gupta, A. Prakash, and R. Tripathi, Eds., Cham: Springer International Publishing, 2021, pp. 123–148. doi: 10.1007/978-3-030-46335-9_9.
  3. S. S. Sarmah, “Understanding Blockchain Technology,” Computer Science and Engineering, 2018.
  4. D. Puthal, N. Malik, S. P. Mohanty, E. Kougianos, and C. Yang, “The Blockchain as a Decentralized Security Framework [Future Directions],” IEEE Consumer Electronics Magazine, vol. 7, no. 2, pp. 18–21, Mar. 2018, doi: 10.1109/MCE.2017.2776459.
  5. T. Sermpinis, G. Vlahavas, K. Karasavvas, and A. Vakali, “DeTRACT: a decentralized, transparent, immutable and open PKI certificate framework,” Int. J. Inf. Secur., vol. 20, no. 4, pp. 553–570, Aug. 2021, doi: 10.1007/s10207-020-00518-3.
  6. A. Kosba, A. Miller, E. Shi, Z. Wen, and C. Papamanthou, “Hawk: The Blockchain Model of Cryptography and Privacy-Preserving Smart Contracts,” in 2016 IEEE Symposium on Security and Privacy (SP), May 2016, pp. 839–858. doi: 10.1109/SP.2016.55.
  7. W. Y. Leong, Y. Z. Leong, and W. S. Leong, “Enhancing Blockchain Security,” in 2024 IEEE Symposium on Wireless Technology & Applications (ISWTA), Jul. 2024, pp. 108–112. doi: 10.1109/ISWTA62130.2024.10651753.
  8. M. Rahaman, C. Y. Lin, I. Rachmat, R. Bansal, and Prayitno, “Secure Health Features: Implementing Hyperledger Fabric in Blockchain-Driven Healthcare Management Systems,” in Digital Forensics and Cyber Crime Investigation, CRC Press, 2024.
  9. Gupta, B. B., Mamta, Mehla, R., Alhalabi, W., & Alsharif, H. (2022). Blockchain technology with its application in medical and healthcare systems: A survey. International Journal of Intelligent Systems37(11), 9798-9832. 
  10. Gupta, B. B., & Narayan, S. (2021). A key-based mutual authentication framework for mobile contactless payment system using authentication server. Journal of Organizational and End User Computing (JOEUC)33(2), 1-16. 

Cite As

Navaneeth J. (2024 ) Blockchain-Enabled Security: Revolutionizing Data Protection, Insights2Techinfo, pp.1

80330cookie-checkBlockchain-Enabled Security: Revolutionizing Data Protection
Share this:

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.