Blockchain against cybercrime. How to use the new technology to foster greater cyber data security.
The extraordinary speed and spread with which, today, data travels on the Web and on technology platforms has heightened the need to combat one of the biggest threats: cyber crime, or cybercrime.
This type of crime, to date, is one of the most fruitful. There are several areas in which web pirates can exploit their cyber knowledge to the detriment of third parties: there are not only online scams, but theft of data and sensitive information belonging to network users is increasingly common. Often the intention comes from a hacker, that is, an individual who, individually or with others, uses strategies to enter the computer circuit and block it.
The solutions indicated by the use of blockchain against cybercrime, to prevent and foil cyber attacks, are proving useful and promising.
The data security benefits associated with blockchain
The many advantages are closely related to the transparency and incorruptibility of distributed platforms. The decentralized nature of data makes it particularly difficult to access and manipulate a server.
Because of the branched structure, in fact, the hacker is forced to change the information in all nodes of the network at the same time. In contrast, in centralized platforms, all information is contained in a central node.
In the distributed platform, this procedure, given the large number of nodes, is extremely complex and even more expensive, and essentially unworkable.
In this case, the scalability of the platform and the increase in network participants become additional guarantees for the security of the recorded data and the users who are part of it.
This structure greatly simplifies the work of attackers who, by gaining access to the core of the network, can get hold of valuable information, block the circuit and steal money.
Nodes, incorruptible allies against cybercrime
The blockchain records all the information of network participants: it is essential that each node be traceable to a natural person to protect the fairness of exchanges. Despite this, privacy is guaranteed since each network participant corresponds to a cryptographic address, which everyone can know, but which hides the owner’s sensitive data. Subjects, therefore, become users who operate a vigilant control over what happens within the platform.
The blockchain, because of its branched structure, becomes more secure as time passes and as it becomes more widely used. Each time a blockchain or node is added, information protection becomes stronger and vigilant control by participants increases.
Thus, the more users there are, acting as guarantors for each other, the more difficult it is to manage or modify all nodes and blocks simultaneously. For example, if one block were to be deleted from the chain, the information on it would still be present on all the others, which would allow information to be preserved and protected.
To understand how blockchain can change the approach to cybercrime problems, let’s take a practical example. August 2021, Lazio Region portal during the vaccination campaign. A hacker attack blocked the site preventing access to citizens, who had no way to retrieve the necessary information or register for vaccine administration.
Through a decentralized system, rather than centralized software, a hacker attack would have been exponentially more unlikely. And, in any case, it would have had less effect on recovery time and sharing of necessary information with citizens. This, again because of the presence of data on different nodes of the network, guaranteed by the blockchain.
Safer companies with blockchain
From a business perspective, turning to blockchain can be a turning point. Both in terms of streamlining data management through private blockchains and in terms of security. A company that stores its data on a distributed ledger makes witnesses to the exchanges taking place within the platform, all those who have the keys to access it. At the same time, it prevents malicious parties from making changes to what is entered into the registry.
All companies should follow technological progress to keep up with the growth and development of competitors. Blockchain can provide many solutions, including fighting cybercrime. Therefore, many large companies are putting in place strategies to experiment with distributed platforms and IoT not only to assess their benefits, but also to know their weaknesses to be contained.
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