blockchain technology
- The beginning of blockchain technology.
The beginning was with a group of researchers in the year
of the documents, and they were supposed to use this technology for the
purposes of documenting the documents so that no one could change the date of
their origin, or change their content.
But God willing, no one cared about this technology at
the time, until it came back in 2009 with Satoshi Nakamoto with the invention
and establishment of bitcoin.
- Blockchain concept and definition
If we translate the term Blockchain into Arabic, it's going
to be blockchain. We know this term is strange to you, so let's explain it.
Let us move away from complex terms that only computing
and software professionals understand, and speak a simplified language that
everyone understands.
All right... When we say the word blocks, what is meant
here is a set of digital information and data associated with each other, but
when we say the word "chain ", it is meant here as a general database.
When we say blockchain, the meaning of the sentence is
(digital information stored in a decentralized database).
It can therefore be said that Blockchain is a ledger that
allows transactions to be processed and recorded in the sight of all parties,
and through a secure network that does not require third-party verification, and
once a transaction is registered within the system, existing data cannot be
changed.
- How blockchain works?
When the block stores new data that is added to the
blockchain to form blockchains, and in order to add a block to the blockchain,
four things must happen:
1. Treatment must be done
For example, if you press the purchase button for a
particular product on a site, here the block will bring together thousands of
potential transactions, so your purchases from the site will be packed into the
block along with other users' transaction information as well.
2. This transaction must be verified
After you make this purchase, you should verify your transaction, for example in the case of public information records, such as Wikipedia or your local library, someone is responsible for examining new data entries.
In the case of this technology and blockchains, this task
is left to the computer network.
3- This transaction must be stored in a block
After verifying the accuracy of your transaction,
location, amount, and personal information are stored in a block.
4. This mass must be fragmented
Once all block transactions are verified, you must give
them a unique specific code called hash, which is also given the latest
segmentation block added to the blockchain.
Once the hash process is completed, this block can be
added to the blockchain, and when this new block is added to the blockchain, it
becomes generally available to everyone to view.
- Uses of blockchain technology
As mentioned earlier, the main purpose of this technology
is to use it for documentation purposes, and then it is used with
cryptocurrencies, which later became clear that it has other uses such as:
1- Financial services
- When it comes to sending money around the world, technology has proven to be very effective, as sending cryptocurrencies and code to people around the world is cheaper and faster than central banks and other payments.
- Moreover, websites and central applications do not give users control over their data, and often do not reward them according to the true value they provide to the platform.
- Decentralized blockchain-based applications take out the broker, giving users access to reduced fees, better incentives, and greater transaction efficiency with the ability to send and receive digital and encrypted funds.
2- Medical records and health care
- Data errors are a major concern for the healthcare sector, and here comes the idea of using blockchain technology, which has many use cases in healthcare, including tracking drugs through the patient data chain.
- Furthermore, the technology may provide significant security benefits to hospitals as these institutions are often attacked by hackers because of the high value of the data they contain.
- Companies use technology as a means of digitally storing health records. These solutions can reduce overall expenditures while enhancing data privacy and accuracy.
3- Government services
Blockchain technology is an ideal means of managing
identity in the government sector, capable of reducing and mitigating fraud,
and managing all citizens' affairs and can be applied to:
Digital identity, passports, electronic residence, birth
and marriage certificates, all works, research, studies... etc.
4- File storage
Decentralized web file storage has many benefits.
Distributing data over the network protects files and shields them from hack or
loss.
- Features of blockchain technology
- As we mentioned earlier, Blockchain technology is not modifiable due to decentralization, and any change in it requires huge, enormous computational software power, not to mention safe as well.
- Technology is also known for its element of transparency, ensuring that users are identified, so the technology does not allow the identification of customers to be disclosed and ensures that they remain anonymous.
- Blockchain defects
- There is no fixed value for currencies due to the nature of technology and cryptocurrencies, making it difficult to calculate taxes related to the use of cryptocurrencies.
- There is no central force that can intervene and help correct the market, and there is also no way to recover lost cryptocurrencies, raising the risk when companies enter encryption.
- Types of blockchain technology
Blockchain technology, like other technologies, has two
types of networks:
- Public Blockchain
This includes most new cryptocurrency transactions and
anyone can review operations and make remittances, but no one is allowed to be
a validator-checker.
It is the auditor who gives blockchain great confidence
to rely on, and has two functions:
Initial: Save a copy of blockchain every second.
Second: the process of confirming ownership and transfers
that take place.
- Private Blockchain
It is a technical network dedicated to a specific company
and can only be accessed by members of the network if the company decides to
make Blockchain for a particular section, the company here controls who enters
its Blockchain network.
- Article summary
- Blockchain technology can be summed up as one of the encryption technologies dedicated to securing digital currencies documents and business transactions in a way that makes it difficult to hack or change any data that is recorded.
- These databases can be public or private, controlled by a specific group of Auditors, a technology that can be further utilized in government agencies, the health sector, and import and export.
- The idea of bitcoin and cryptocurrencies came from blockchain technology that relies on tight encryption, but one of its drawbacks is the inability to calculate taxes on digital currencies, and the inability to recover lost digital currencies.
- Blockchain technology is not yet widespread and the percentage of use it should be, except for digital currencies, and it would be good to use it more in commercial, health, government, and other transactions.