How will blockchain affect the future of cybersecurity?
Blockchain technology, whose name we have heard more on crypto money exchanges in the past years, seems to have proven that it will frequently appear in the future in terms of ease of use and benefits. It is an undeniable fact that it will be preferred in the future as it reveals data confidentiality, immutability, and continuity (Confidentiality — Integrity — Availability). It is also expected to be used in government offices as it can bring security and transparency to hospitals, land registry offices, businesses, municipalities, and various commercial areas.
What is cyber security and why is it important?
So what is this Blockchain Technology?
To summarize blockchain technology briefly, we can use the definition of Distributed Database. Instead of keeping the data it keeps in the target database at a single address and providing the data, it is the unchangeable storage of the same information for everyone who has the registry of the database. In this system, the registry following the first opened registry stores a hash and data belonging to both itself and the previous block. Thanks to the digital signatures created with the hashes, the manipulations that will take place on the blocks do not allow any threat actor to simply damage the database. Registries in all users do not allow them to affect the whole chain by distinguishing the tampered data blocks with their digital signatures.
Blockchain and Cyber Threats
Many people refer to blockchain technology as “unhackable” because the blockchain must be extremely secure and unalterable. However, recent events have shown that threat actors can gain access to blockchains in certain situations. It is possible to manipulate data with 51% attacks and Sybil attacks, where it is possible to completely lose the chain.
Cybersecurity and digital transformation, a necessity for companies?
51% Attack
If more than half of the hash rate on the blockchain falls into the hands of an attacker or group, the blockchain is completely lost and the attackers can manipulate the data as they wish. These attacks are more likely to occur on smaller-scale blockchains because it is quite difficult to gain control over more complex blockchains. Check cost of attacks.
Sybil Attack
Sybil attack is a type of attack in which an attacker aims to control the entire network by creating many fake identities. It is named after the book Sybil, which deals with the case study of a woman diagnosed with multiple identity disorder. It occurs when the attacker gradually corrupts the correct nodes with more than one corrupted node. If it is not prevented, it can result in the loss of the rest of the chain from the beginning of the attack.
Blockchain technology will completely change the way of doing business not only for financial-oriented businesses but also in different fields from agriculture to the energy sector, from insurance to real estate. While this technology, which will reduce costs by eliminating intermediaries in business processes in different sectors, was initially used only in bitcoin infrastructure, today it can be used for intellectual property, identity verification and even elections.
Gartner says: BLOCKCHAIN will grow rapidly, reaching $176 billion by 2025 and $3.1 trillion by 2030
There is no place for fake transactions in this system
This system, where you can make low-cost, uninterrupted, and fast transactions without the need for a center or intermediary, is extremely transparent. With Blockchain, you can track where the data comes from, where it goes, and who makes transactions. There is no room for fraudulent transactions in this system. Confirming the movements on the system at multiple points eliminates the threats and frauds that may occur in the system. Because of these features, we can say that blockchain will change the future of cyber security forever. So how does this happen technically? Blockchain technology records information in a way that is impossible to change. In other words, once the data is encoded into the chain, no changes can be made. In this context, it is very safe to use in cyber security applications. In a system where this technology is running, when a new block containing transactions is created, a hash of the data entered by the data miners is extracted and added to the end of the chain. In this way, data is securely attached to the chain without loss of information.
Consider, for example, applications in finance. In these applications, transactions are processed and recorded in a way that does not change. Once recorded, credit card transactions cannot be changed again. Financial transfers are digitally signed, processed, and verified in seconds. Bitcoin, debit card, and wallet applications are already using the advantages of this system. So in what other ways might blockchain be important to the future of cybersecurity?
Authentication
Blockchain technology can also be used in the verification mechanism. As you know, traditional authentication mechanisms use a password system. The problem with the password system is this: passwords depend on people. Therefore, it can be forgotten or somehow passed into the hands of others. When a password is stolen, the security of the entire system is compromised. In Blockchain, the system solves the problem by removing the password. Instead of giving a single password to the user, a block hash can be defined as a password for any user. This hash password creates the user’s login certificate. Once the login is provided, its validity expires and a new certificate is created by the system at the next login.
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Messaging
Blockchain’s power in data delivery can be harnessed within messaging systems. Due to the system structure, the encrypted message can only be opened and read by the person with the appropriate signature. The system allows the distribution of all kinds of data such as photos, and documents. It is also possible to transfer money through the system. Blockchain is one of the technologies that will change the world. However, it is still in the stage of proving itself and developing. I can say that we can better understand how important it is for the future as we start to see its effects on different sectors very recently.
Would you like to use blockchain for your cybersecurity? Contact Enkronos team today.
