Category: Blockchain

Till now, we have seen how blockchain has been disrupting multiple industries, transforming the way businesses carry out their day-to-day activities using transparent, reliable, and certain use cases. 

However, the eCommerce sector doesn’t stay still. According to Statista, the global retail e-commerce sales were around 4.9 trillion dollars in 2021. This value is expected to increase by 50% within the next four years, reaching $7.4 trillion by 2025.

Because of this rapid expansion, industry powerhouses like Amazon, Alibaba, and eBay have emerged based on centralized data and dominance.

So what innovation can be brought up to operate more effectively in the e-commerce business? 

The solution is new technology.

Nokia, for example, ranked first in mobile phone manufacture in 2007. In the same year, Apple launched the iPhone 1, nobody remembers Nokia? Apple is everywhere in the media.

E-commerce is the same idea. New technologies have the potential to break monopolies. This technology is, again, blockchain!

So, let’s dive in to know how blockchain can create a difference in the eCommerce sector.

How Blockchain Works in eCommerce

A blockchain is a distributed ledger in which data (or blocks) are linked together in a chain. Because the data is accessible and managed by multiple parties, discrepancies are easily detected, making it reliable. 

While blockchain has long been linked with Cryptocurrencies, its true potential is now being recognized by a variety of businesses. According to Gartner, the corporate value-add of blockchain will exceed $360 billion by 2026.

Blockchain’s key features include:

• Without a central authority, blockchain enables transparency and consensus-based trust.
• The decentralized ecosystem provides a solid foundation that is nearly impossible to hack.
• It allows consumers to engage directly with businesses or other consumers, bypassing the need for intermediaries.
• Blockchain can convert insights into unchangeable assets, enabling more precise data management.
• It can save businesses up to 90% of their costs.

Blockchain technology enhances the safety and speed of e-commerce transactions. Utilizing blockchain technology, digital assets can be shared and secured manually and automatically. In addition, user actions like online payments, product searches, purchases, and customer support can be handled by this technology.

Blockchain e-commerce solutions have possibilities that go beyond online payments. On a bigger scale, the technology can be used in:

• Supply chain management
• Inventory management
• Marketing Strategies & Data Protection
• Improving customer experience
• Detecting fake product reviews, and so on.

In the further sections of the article, you will get to know about all these applications in detail.

Key Benefits of Blockchain in eCommerce

E-commerce is a great application of blockchain technology because sellers and buyers benefit from it. The technology is easy to use, offers simple solutions to cyber threats, and improves financial security. It also saves money in managing inventory and processing payments, as we will discuss below.

1. Cost-Saving

E-commerce companies can easily link inventory control, payment services, product descriptions, and imagery with other business processes. By reducing the cost of maintaining the systems that support these activities and paying for IT support workers, they can save money. In addition, as a result of cryptocurrency, banks charge lower fees for facilitating transactions.

2. Enhanced Security

Many online businesses feel it challenging to keep up with competitors and expand customer demand. They are also vulnerable to cyber attacks, resulting in the loss of user data and money. 

Online sellers can address these issues using blockchain technology. Using distributed ledger technology, e-commerce data warehouses enjoy the highest level of security.

3. Faster Transactions

Blockchain technology such as Waves can quickly make online payments on e-commerce websites. Unlike traditional payment procedures, where consumers had to wait hours or even days to complete transactions, blockchains now offer consumers the flexibility they need online. 

4. Improved Business Processes

Apart from transactional data, blockchains can hold smart contracts that can automate processes like regular payments and inventory control using preset rules and if-then expressions.

For example, imagine buying a Rolex and making a deposit using a blockchain-based cryptocurrency. You receive a receipt that is stored in a digital contract. 

The store ships the watch to you on a specific delivery date, and if it doesn’t turn up on time, the blockchain refunds your deposit. On the other hand, if you get the watch, the blockchain sends the retailer your entire payment.

Blockchain can also hold digital documents such as customer invoices and warranty claims, making it much easier to verify ownership and warranty validity while simultaneously reducing the number of paper records.

5. Access to Global Consumer

Banks in developing countries often do not provide security systems to their customers. By utilizing blockchains and cryptocurrencies, they can bypass banking intermediaries, giving access to a broader range of eCommerce retailers. In addition, forward-thinking companies can enter new emerging markets by using blockchain and cryptocurrency technologies.

6. Rewards and Referrals for Interactive Customer Experience

Brands can easily issue rewards, cashback offers, and referral programs that can be redeemed across various sites and affiliate brands using blockchain. Companies can also pay influencers or content creators in cryptocurrencies, which can subsequently be exchanged into their currency.

How Blockchain Will Transform the eCommerce Sector?

E-commerce sites and blockchain technologies establish an economic network that benefits both customers and online stores. Using distributed ledger technology in their business processes, online merchants find new ways to serve their customers.

Blockchain technology can be used to improve the consumer experience. Several e-commerce applications that blockchain will create are listed below.

1. Smart Contracts

The Smart Contract is a computer program that automates work by following predetermined rules. Because smart contracts are stored on blockchains, they can automate activities related to e-commerce. 

E-commerce businesses can expand by reducing costs associated with hiring employees for tasks that computers can handle. Smart contracts can also simplify inventory management. Online sellers will easily be able to monitor their inventory.

2. Supply Chain Monitoring

Online retailers can achieve their business goals by building a trustworthy supply chain. Thanks to supply chains, store owners can know what products are on their way and when they will arrive. 

In addition, supply chains help business owners verify the commodities offered by vendors. They may prevent vendors from swapping certain products and increase transparency when they use the blockchain to track the supply chain.

3. Generating Genuine Reviews

Online business owners can use blockchain technology to authenticate customer reviews. Reviewers of Internet services and products are questioning the reliability of most of them. 

Credible product reviews and ratings are vital to the reputation of an e-commerce company, so these companies can use blockchain technology to generate authentic ratings.

4. Loyalty Programs & Personal Offers

Online retailers can easily provide their customers with redeemable reward points after they reach specified purchase thresholds by integrating blockchain technology into their business operations. Many online retailers have confirmed that these reward points can be used across various e-commerce websites. 

Due to blockchain technology, customers can also take advantage of customized offers and discounts from retailers. E-commerce businesses can grow their customer bases and expand their product offerings by using loyalty programs.

5. Inventory Control

Inventory control is one area where blockchain can be extremely beneficial. For example, businesses can reduce inventory by using traditional shopping carts, but they can also order new goods when pre-defined criteria are met. This ensures that the online business never goes out of stock while also preventing the accumulation of excess inventory.

6. Warranty Management

Consumers and businesses are frequently frustrated by the loss of paper receipts and the inability to confirm warranty coverage. Retailers can quickly and efficiently store warranty documentation with blockchain. Manufacturers, merchants, and customers will all have access to the data, making warranty data easily available and verifiable.

Recent Examples of Blockchain-Based eCommerce Project

Here are some examples of real-world initiatives that demonstrate blockchain’s impact on eCommerce:

1. Amazon

Although this isn’t a blockchain initiative, Amazon has gone even farther, recommending that organizations adopt Amazon Web Services (AWS) as a blockchain-as-a-service solution with ready-made blockchain templates. vides managed blockchains to businesses based on popular Ethereum and Hyperledger. 

So it’s not difficult to imagine Amazon accepting cryptocurrency in their web store, which would be a great milestone for eCommerce.

2. Metafactory

MetaFactory describes itself as a platform for community-owned digiphysical clothing.

It’s organized as a DAO and provides artists with a platform to design things that are then manufactured, transported, and distributed by the platform’s partners.

Its goal is to bring designers, businesses, and buyers into a single community while also eliminating pricing inefficiencies.

Given the importance of storytelling in today’s fashion industry, MetaFactory would be an interesting social experiment.

The platform is still in its early stages, but if they move their cards well, it could rival Shopify.

3. Honeywell Aerospace

Honeywell Aerospace operates an airplane resale segment with over $1 billion in parts.

Filing complicated documentation with the FAA, including time-consuming paperwork, is required when selling refurbished airplane components online.

The procedure has been greatly simplified, saving the organization huge amounts of money in document management expenditures.

Given how reliant B2B eCommerce is on sophisticated supply chain operations that are also incredibly wasteful, blockchain could be an ace.

Blockchain Has Already Gained Momentum in eCommerce

Blockchain technology and e-commerce are intriguing in transparency, stability, and cost benefits. Businesses that cannot provide value to their clients face several risks. Despite these advantages, companies must adopt blockchain for long-term success due to its unique benefits to e-commerce.

Those vendors wishing to embrace a transparent business model and deal with consumer data efficiently may find blockchain technology a great option. Furthermore, it reduces the demand for paper-based manual processes and ensures the security of crypto transactions.

To stay ahead of your customers, your business needs to explore the tangible benefits of blockchain technology and e-commerce.

At Parangat, we develop blockchain applications to help businesses prosper and optimize user experiences. Contact us anytime if you’d like to learn more about how blockchain might help your e-commerce business adopt this new tech. 

Blockchain is a distributed and immutable ledger that helps companies record transactions and manage assets (both tangible and intangible) more efficiently. All forms of value can be recorded and exchanged on the blockchain network, eliminating risk and reducing expenses for all parties.

But, first and foremost, what are blockchain networks?

The blockchain network is an infrastructure that connects applications to the ledger and smart contracts. In general, smart contracts create pre-planned or preprogrammed transactions sent to both peers in a network and then immutably recorded on each node’s ledger copy. App users include client application users and blockchain network administrators.

So, how many different blockchain networks exist?

In most circumstances, multiple companies form a consortium to build the web, and their permissions are governed by regulations that the consortium agrees to when the network is first created.

Other forms of blockchain networks include public, private, and hybrid blockchain networks.

This article will cover all four types of blockchain networks and their benefits, challenges, use cases, and examples.

What Is The Purpose Of Different Kinds Of Blockchains?

When blockchain technology was exposed for the first time, it was a public version with a cryptocurrency application. Because of this, it is hard to decipher the creator’s intentions, even though it introduced the concept of decentralized ledger technology (DLT).

The DLT mechanism altered how we tackle problems in our daily lives, enabling groups to work without relying on a central authority.

While distributed technology overcomes the limitations of centralization, it also poses new challenges when it comes to implementing blockchain technology in various situations.

Bitcoin, for example, relied on the inefficient Proof-of-Work consensus mechanism, and it needed the nodes to use energy to do mathematical calculations.

Initially, it wasn’t a problem, but as the difficulty level increased, so did the time and energy required to solve those complex equations. The inefficiency of this method makes it unsuitable for any system that must remain efficient.

For example, banks handle many transactions each day, and they demand extensive scalability. This makes the public blockchain unsuitable.

In addition to scalability and lack of automation, the first generation of blockchain had many other shortcomings.

In conclusion, we can summarize that:

• Early blockchains were inefficient and lacked scalability.
• Moreover, public blockchain does not suit everyone’s needs or objectives.
• A public blockchain is slow, has scalability issues, and consumes a lot of energy.

These three factors are considered the base points to invent new types of blockchains as mentioned below:

Types of Blockchains

Generally, blockchains are categorized into two varieties:

• Permissionless Blockchain

The permission less blockchain is an open network that allows any user to connect pseudo-anonymously, and it does not limit the privileges of its nodes.

Permission less blockchains offer greater security than permission because they validate transactions across numerous nodes. Therefore, bad actors wouldn’t be able to work together on the network. On the other hand, a permission less blockchain takes a long time to process transactions because of its many nodes.

Examples: All public blockchains such as Bitcoin and Ethereum are permission less blockchains.

• Permissioned Blockchain

A permissioned blockchain restricts network access and may also restrict nodes rights on the web. Also, users identities on a permissioned blockchain are known by its other users.

Therefore, a permissioned blockchain is more efficient. Moreover, since nodes on the blockchain can only access the network via a specified address, fewer nodes are online, resulting in comparatively faster transaction processing, unlike permissionless blockchains.

Examples:: All private blockchains such as Corda, Hyperledger Fabric, and Quorum are permissioned Enterprise blockchains.

Based on this category, we have four types of blockchains:

• Public Blockchains

Public blockchains fall under the category of permissionless and are decentralized, allowing everyone in the network to participate. All blockchain nodes in the public blockchain network possess equal access to the blockchain, generate new data blocks, and authenticate the data on the blocks.

Public blockchains are employed in mining and exchanging bitcoins. However, popular public blockchains like Bitcoin, Litecoin, and Ethereum are familiar. Nodes on public blockchains mine to solve cryptographic equations for creating new blocks for the requested cryptographic transactions.

The users who perform mining are compensated for their efforts with a small bitcoin. The miners are similar to modern-day bank tellers in that they formulate a transaction and are paid for their work.

Benefits of Public Blockchains

• Open Access: Anyone globally can submit data, use it, and manage it on public blockchains.

• Distributed Ledger: Unlike client-server platforms, databases on public blockchains are not centralized. Each node on the blockchain network keeps track of its master copy of the virtual database and helps to validate new transactions. This eliminates the need for unneeded intermediaries, standard in centralized transaction chains.

• Security: As it simplifies the difficulty of simultaneously editing and effecting changes on all copies of databases available on each node on the network, it limits the odds of manipulation and cyberattacks on public blockchains.

• Anonymity: Another significant advantage of public blockchains is the anonymity of users. Users identities are secured from prying eyes through cryptographic identities known as public keys.

Challenges of Public Blockchains

• Scalability: In most blockchain networks, all users (called nodes) are required to validate each new transaction. As a result, transactions are typically delayed, and transaction throughput is low. As a result, businesses that rely on immediate transaction confirmation, like Visa or Paypal, would have difficulty functioning with a public blockchain.

• Smart Contracts: Smart contracts are unchangeable and have irrevocable results. Businesses cannot risk installing flawed immutable smart contracts and facing the irreversible consequences of their automatic enforcement.

• Storage Constraints: Each computer retains data blocks indefinitely in a blockchain network. As a result, significant storage needs are imposed, which are unrealistic in the context of a business application.

• Power: Just as public blockchains necessitate infinite storage spaces, their reliance on mining and consensus algorithms requires the availability of significant computational and energy resources. This high cost is unsustainable in the context of corporate integration.

• Privacy: Another considerable disadvantage of public blockchains is their complete openness. As a result, transaction privacy is limited to non-existent.

 

Use Cases of Public Blockchain

The public blockchain has a variety of applications. Let’s look at a few of them to get a better sense.

• Voting: Governments can vote using a public blockchain that is transparent and trustworthy.
• Fundraising: Organizations can utilize the public blockchain to improve transparency and trust in their fundraising efforts.

Examples of Public Blockchains: Bitcoin, Litecoin, Ethereum, NEO

• Private Blockchain

Restricted access and permissioned relationships are the lifeblood of private blockchains. New users are usually invited and validated by the platform’s admin or founder’s particular rules. 

Enterprise blockchains are typically used for intra-company transactions, with access limited to corporate members and employees. However, non-members are permitted access to the chain on a need-to-know basis if they need to be there. R3 Corda and Hyperledger Fabric are some of the most well-known private blockchains.

Benefits of Private Blockchains

• Controlled Access: One of the most noticeable features of private blockchains is the admin’s broad control over who can and cannot access the platform. The business identity management system verifies new users and grants them access to enterprise data.

• Faster Transaction: Enterprise blockchains have fewer nodes than public blockchains, allowing more secured transactions. Because the number of users that need to reach a consensus is reduced, speeding up the processing and validation of transactions or operations.

• Efficient Governance: In private blockchains, the entire virtual platform is controlled by a central authority. The admin specifies the standards, processes, methodologies, and tools to ensure the platform’s day-to-day administration.

Challenges of Private Blockchains

• Lack of Trust: The operation of private blockchains process depends on a few powerful nodes that validate transactions. Except for those with validation powers, all other users are not trusted enough to be given network governance rights.

• Security: Because a private blockchain often has fewer users, it’s far easier for a single party to gain control of or alienate the blockchain network for selfish, dishonest objectives. It is essentially more vulnerable to database attacks, hacks, and manipulations.

Use Cases of Private Blockchain

There are numerous applications for private blockchains, and the following is a list of some of them.

• Supply chain management: A private blockchain extensively cooperates in the supply-chain management of any organization.
• Asset ownership: A private blockchain helps in tracking and verifying assets. 
• Internal Voting: Private blockchain can be used for internal voting as well.

Examples of Private Blockchains: Hyperledger Fabric, R3 Corda, and Hyperledger Sawtooth

• Federated/ Consortium Blockchains

Federated blockchains (also known as consortium blockchains) are a new solution that combines the capabilities of public and private blockchains. 

While some aspects of the organizations are made public in a consortium blockchain, others remain confidential.

Preset nodes govern consensus operations on a blockchain. Even though it is not open to the general public, it maintains a decentralized nature. Multiple organizations administer a consortium blockchain.

Benefits of Consortium Blockchains

• Enables resource management and customization.
• Enhances security and scalability.
• More efficient compared to public blockchains and provides the features of private blockchains.
• Works with well-structured governance.
• Provides access restrictions.

Challenges of Consortium Blockchains

• Despite being secure, the integrity of the nodes is compromised in some places.
• Provides low transparency compared to public blockchains.
• Strict regulations impact the operations of the network.
• Less anonymity.

Use Cases of Consortium Blockchain

The consortium blockchain has a variety of applications. The following are a few of them:

• Banking and payments: A consortium can be formed by a group of banks. They have control over a set of nodes that perform transaction validations.
• Research: A consortium blockchain can assist in sharing and maintaining research data.
• Food tracking: It’s helpful in keeping track of what you eat.

Examples of Consortium Blockchains: IBM Food Trust and Energy Web Foundation.

• Hybrid Blockchains

Although hybrid blockchains sound like consortiums, they are not the same thing. However, there are similarities between the two.

Hybrid blockchains combine the benefits of both private and public blockchains. Those who want the best of both worlds and don’t want to implement either a private or public blockchain can use a hybrid blockchain.

Benefits of Hybrid Blockchains

• Works in a restricted ecosystem without demanding everything to be public.
• We can customize the network according to our needs.
• Hybrid networks can protect your network from 51% of attacks.
• Though it is tied to a public network, it nourishes privacy.
• Compared to the public network, it provides greater scalability.

Challenges of Hybrid Blockchains

• Hybrid Blockchains are not entirely transparent.
• It is difficult to upgrade to a hybrid blockchain.
• No incentives are offered to people who contribute to the network.

Use Cases of Hybrid Blockchain

• Real estate: Real-estate corporations can use hybrid blockchains to run their strategies. The public network facility helps them display information to the public.
• Retail: The hybrid network allows retailers to streamline business procedures.
• Highly regulated: Hybrid blockchains are well-suited for financial markets, requiring high regulation.

Examples of Hybrid Blockchains: XinFin’s Hybrid blockchain and Dragonchain.

Which Type of Blockchain Should you Choose?

Public, private, and consortium blockchains are not mutually exclusive – they are different technologies:

Factors	Public  Blockchain	Private Blockchain	ConsortiumBlockchain	Hybrid Blockchain
Privacy	No	Yes	Yes	Yes
Scalability	No	Yes	Yes	Yes
Transparency	Yes	No	No	Yes
Controlled Access,	No	Yes	Yes	Yes
Governance	No	Yes	Yes	Yes

• When it comes to censorship resistance, well-designed public chains tend to excel at the expense of speed and throughput. Hence, public blockchains are the greatest for increased transaction security assurances (or smart contracts).

• We do not need to worry about central points of failure like public blockchains. Private blockchains are best used when an individual or emphasized organization needs to maintain control over information while keeping it private.

• Consortium chains eliminate some of the counterparty concerns associated with private chains (by removing centralized control), and their lower node count allows them to perform far better than public chains. Organizations that aim to expedite communication between themselves are likely interested in consortiums.

Wrapping up Types Of Blockchains

We look at different blockchains. If you’re a business and want to use blockchain without making anything public, using private blockchain is a fantastic choice.

On the other hand, a public platform is a smart choice if you want your network to be transparent, and they are not suited to enterprise use cases.

However, if you are looking for expert advice, reach out to Parangat. Our specialized staff of highly-skilled blockchain professionals will identify your visions and impediments in the process. Then, we will provide you with the most feasible solution for implementing blockchain technology in your business operations alongside providing full-fledged support from project ideation to deployment.

The price of developing a blockchain app varies depending on the app’s features, efforts, and objectives, much to the cost of developing a mobile application. After considering various variables, concrete instances, and complex data, we assessed the expenses associated with blockchain development.

A blockchain app can be created in various ways, each of which will have a different price and set of benefits and drawbacks. In this blog, we will be discussing the resources that are needed for blockchain app development and also various factors that affect the cost of blockchain app development.

What Kind of Resources Are Needed When Developing a Blockchain Application?

 

You must be aware of the resources required for blockchain development to understand the cost of developing the blockchain app.

1.Developers

Yes, the developer plays a crucial role in your budgeting. Finding a coding expert is so vital. There are two different sorts of hourly rates that developers charge, according to Codementor. 

They are:- 

1. Lower Range
2. Higher Range

You might make some savings if you decide to outsource your work.

2. Cryptocurrency

Considering that bitcoin is the first successful implementation of blockchain technology, every blockchain project has at least one unique coin. Therefore, creating your cryptocurrency and making it distinctive from more than 2000 other cryptocurrencies is necessary.

In order to introduce a coin to the market properly, you need a team of marketing managers, software developers, technologists, and PR executives. They can help you find financiers who will give your project credibility. To navigate the industry, you’ll also need a consultant. Engaging your target customers is also crucial.

When earning money, you must learn how to market fresh cryptocurrencies. The key to success is to appeal to the audience’s desires, communicate the benefits of your project, demonstrate your cutting-edge technology, etc. Having a marketing consultant coordinate your marketing activities is essential.

3. Crypto Wallet

A cryptocurrency wallet is a piece of software that functions just like a physical wallet and is used to send, receive, and store digital currencies safely. The majority of cryptocurrencies have recommended third-party wallets or official wallet software. In other words, to access any cryptocurrency, you are going to require a cryptocurrency wallet. 

The program is typically created for three different operating systems: Android, iOS, and Web. Utilizing cross-platform technology like JavaScript and associated frameworks could lower the cost of development (ReactJS, React Native or Vue). These days, it necessitates a sizable quantity of work.

Therefore, we must deal with the REST API on the server side as well as the client side for mobile devices or the Internet. Building an application as a standalone is an additional choice. Every strategy has advantages and disadvantages.

Factors Affecting the Cost of a Blockchain Application

1. The market for the Application

Well, first and foremost the most important factor which impacts the development cost of any application is the industry to which the application belongs.

Variables that affect costs vary from sector to sector – the complexity of the dApp, the number of stakeholders who interact with it, and, among other things, industry compliance requirements.

2. The Project’s Complexity

There are a lot of criteria that need to be taken into account to define the intricacy of a Blockchain mobile application. The first thing you have to think about is the purpose of the app. 

You need to have a good understanding of the problems that end users are facing, the available solutions, the need for investing in the development of blockchain apps, and how your app can offer superior services. All of these will assist you in determining the blockchain application or solution in which you should invest.

First and foremost, understanding an app’s goal is crucial. Learn about the issues that consumers face, the benefits of investing in blockchain, how it is developed, and how an app may provide better services.

Apps with Less-Complexity

• App for Basic Smart Contract Development.
• Simple DApp with consensus mechanism.

Apps of Moderate Complexity

• Semi-decentralized applications
• DApps created using blockchain technology, including those built on Ethereum, Hyperledger Fabric/Sawtooth, EOS, and other

Apps with High Complexity

• Building a blockchain platform from the ground up
• Constructing a comprehensive decentralized network

In addition to the blockchain application’s complexity, the cost of a blockchain app is frequently influenced by employees, equipment, technology, designing processes, and running expenses. Let’s explore each of these factors in greater depth.

3. The Type of App You’re Requesting

Every company needs a digital solution to increase efficiency and expand the business. You need software that either enhances the value of your product or brings in a lot of money, or you need to find a solution to the broader business issue.

Businesses can benefit from traceability, accountability, and trust due to a blockchain architecture while also saving money on other intermediaries.  You can build blockchain applications for a range of industries, including education, fashion, healthcare, utilities, transportation, gaming, and more. And you might need a SaaS application to provide business subscription services.

4. Cost of the Third-Party Tools

• AWS: Storage, Delivery, and Computing (Depending on the number of users, between $100 and $1000)
• Monitoring services like Statuspage.io and Uptime Robot: Sending downtime notifications ($10 to $50)
• Services for alerts like Twilio, Kumulos, and Amazon SNS: ($10 to $50) Allowing notifications within the app
• Tools for tracking bugs, such as Instabug and Bugsee: Live bug collection and reporting ($10 to $100 per month)
• Flurry or Mixpanel analytics: Data analytics, funnel analysis, insight analysis, and reporting ($0 to $150)

There is currently a shortage of competent & skilled blockchain developers in the market because blockchain technology is still in its infancy. An average blockchain developer makes $150,000 a year.

5. Cost of the People Involved

What kind of resources are required to create an application? The cost of engaging a team to develop a blockchain app is a sizable portion of the projected costs.

The main expenses are software developers’ salaries. But in addition to income, there are other crucial considerations, such as insurance, holidays, pay for promotions, payroll, and vacation days.

Don’t forget to factor in the costs associated with hiring, which could involve management time and advertising to acquire the necessary resources for the blockchain project. It can be difficult to find expertise because blockchain is new to many people. Resources for training must be continually heavily funded by organizations.

The expense of training may involve paying for online courses or travelling to significant blockchain-related events.

6. App Development Process

The price of deploying blockchain depends on a number of initiatives or phases of the development cycle:

• Design: Blueprint for the system, wireframes for the user interface and experience, high-fidelity designs with a prototype, and low-fidelity designs with an app flow.
• Development: Coding and Testing
• Deployment: Delivery & DevOps, Cloud Platform Deployment
• Migration: Adapting the current method for use with the Blockchain platform
• Maintenance: Maintaining new updates and ensuring that the app functions properly on each new OS version
• Upgrade: Smart Contracts changes, new features
• Tools from Third Parties: Collaboration, hosting, storage, and notification system.

The costs of various tools and technologies are incurred during the blockchain development process in addition to the costs of the blockchain developers and designers.

7. Project Management Approach

They track recurring sprints, tests, timelines, defects, and deliverables using an agile methodology, which includes weekly scrums and regular meetings. Confluence, Trello, and Jira are three examples of software that can help with the agile technique.

These software tool costs are included in the overall cost of putting blockchain into use. For instance, we utilize the Jira project management platform to give clients action items and monitor our internal team’s progress.

8. Continuous Integration

Each developer will write and evaluate code in a shared code repository to ensure that it integrates neatly with everyone else’s code. A software quality pipeline needs to be managed carefully.

The best approach to verify this is through an automated process. The cost of the blockchain app has increased due to the utilization of Bitbucket and Github for source code management.

An average blockchain developer makes $150,000 a year. By contrast, employing a full-service organization as opposed to a blockchain developer could end up being far more expensive for any company.

9. Maintenance

It seems like new platforms are entering the market every single day, and blockchain technology is still in its infancy. As a result, alternative systems should be used exclusively based on their ability to scale, be flexible, and maintain secrecy.

Additionally, every year, new OS updates are released by Apple, Google, and several blockchain platforms. Depending on the app’s complexity, maintenance of a blockchain app often costs between 30 and 35 percent of the total project cost.

Blockchain Application Development Cost: Summary Table

 

Factor	Freelancer/hour	Outsourcing/hour
Turnaround time	50 hours	30 hours
Front-End Developers	$61-$80	$40-$70
UI Designers	$20-$40	$40
Blockchain Developers	$100-$200	$70-$200
Tools	$1500/month	$1000 (starting from)
Hosting	$100 – $1000	$200+
Miscellaneous	$2000	$1500
Maintenance	$3800 – $7000	Variable
Total Cost	$16450 – $27500	$3000- $20,000

 

This table makes it clear that, if you want to develop a blockchain project, outsourcing is unquestionably the best option. Even though the cost range for outsourcing may be wider, it requires much less time. Additionally, you won’t have to bother about recruiting engineers, managing hosting services, managing tools, etc.

You can concentrate more on marketing and how to make your application better overall by outsourcing. Additionally, it is exceedingly challenging to coordinate with all the independent contractors. That issue can be avoided via outsourcing.

Parangat offers a skilled team of developers and designers who can assist you in producing stunning blockchain products.

Data is considered one of the world’s most important assets. Hence, the need to protect it from being hacked or tampered with. Organizations are trying to secure data by implementing various stringent authentication measures and using cryptography key vaulting mechanisms. These measures, however, are not enough to thwart attempts at fraud.

In this scenario, blockchain is emerging as one of the best ways to secure data. As it is a relatively new technology, people are still debating how secure blockchain is.

As per the reports, the global blockchain technology market will likely be worth $20 billion by 2024. Its unique data security measures are capable of thwarting malicious cyber-attacks. However, understanding how blockchain works can be a bit tricky. 

Hence, this article attempts to summarize blockchain data security in simple terms. By the end of this article, you will be able to decide how and why blockchain is secure.

What are the different types of Blockchains?

Each type of blockchain falls under any of the following three categories – 

• permissionless blockchain
• permitted blockchain or
• both(permitted and permissionless)

Permissionless blockchains allow anyone to anonymously or with a pseudonym join a blockchain network (or become a network node). They can participate in both mining and validating blocks of data. 

Permitted blockchains are such and are not accessible to anyone. Access to such blockchains is limited to a certain number of users. In addition, the users can only perform specific actions granted to them by the administrators of the concerned ledger. Unlike permissionless blockchains, the identity of a user is known to the other users of that blockchain. 

Following are the different types of blockchains –

1. Public Blockchains 

These blockchains are permissionless. Anyone can join this blockchain without revealing one’s identity to fellow users. In this type of blockchain, both the decision-making and the controlling powers are not restricted in the hands of a central authority but somewhat decentralized, i.e., exercised by a network of users. 

All public blockchain nodes have equal rights to build new data blocks, access the blockchain, and validate the blocks of data in the blockchain.

To date, public blockchains are mainly used to mine and exchange cryptocurrency. Bitcoin, Litecoin, and Ethereum are some of the popular public blockchains. 

2. Private Blockchains

These blockchains are also known as managed blockchains. The central authority has the power to determine who can be a node in a private blockchain. Unlike public blockchains, each blockchain node does not exercise equal rights to build new blocks of data, access the blockchain, and validate data blocks. 

These are partially decentralized blockchains that are not accessible publicly. The business-to-business (B2B) virtual currency trading networks Ripple and Hyperledger are some of the best examples of private blockchain. 

However, both public and private blockchains have some drawbacks.  Due to a large number of nodes, public blockchains require a longer time to validate new data as compared to private blockchains, which have a limited number of nodes. On the other hand, private blockchains are more prone to fraud and tampering, as a central authority controls them. 

To address these drawbacks, consortium blockchains have been developed. 

3. Consortium Blockchains

These blockchains can be regarded as semi-decentralized networks, which are governed by a cluster of organizations rather than by a single entity, as in the case of private blockchains. It is more secure than public blockchains. It is popularly used by organizations that have common goals.

For the financial services industry, a consortium blockchain has been developed by R3 – An enterprise software firm. The Global Shipping Business Network Consortium, a non-profit blockchain consortium, has been built by CargoSmart. 

How does blockchain provide security for digital credentials?

Now, let’s discuss how privacy and security in blockchain are ensured. 

To understand how blockchain provides security for digital credentials, let’s break the process down into several component parts such as –

• What is a digital credential
• Difference between traditional ledger and blockchain system
• What are nodes?
• How blockchain uses encryption to secure digital credentials?

What is a digital credential?

A digital credential is a digital form of any type of record. It can be a transaction record too. Whenever one performs a transaction, the individual is awarded a digital credential. Like any other transaction, the details of it need to be recorded in a safe place. The transaction details or the digital credential are stored in a blockchain network to safeguard against fraud, theft, or removal and from the risk of unauthorized amendments. 

Difference between traditional ledger and blockchain system

The difference between a traditional ledger and a blockchain system is that, while a traditional ledger is a single record that is maintained physically, the blockchain system can be considered to be a digital ledger. It is a decentralised ledger system which allows the details of an authorized transaction to be recorded to all designated modes of the blockchain network. Thus, a transaction recorded in a blockchain is immensely safe, as multiple records of a single transaction are maintained. On the other hand, transaction details recorded within a traditional ledger can be easily tampered with, as it is mainly recorded once. 

What are nodes?

A node is any device, be it phones, personal computers, servers, or IP webcams, that is linked to the internet. These nodes are interconnected. Each of these notes in a blockchain can be regarded as an independent ledger. Hence If any user tries to tamper or amend a particular record on the blockchain, they must gain access to more than half of the nodes that bear a copy of that blockchain. The greater the number of nodes(digital ledgers), the more difficult it would become to hack each node. 

A common consensus must validate a transaction before they are added to the blockchain. The node owners are lured to validate a transaction by rewarding them in the form of cryptocurrency. This process of earning validation is called “proof of work.” It can be immensely helpful to thwart any attempt at fraudulent records of transactions. 

How blockchain uses encryption to secure digital credentials?

Moreover, in a blockchain, data is stored in an encrypted form using a private and public key or an encryption algorithm and an encryption key. This means that a simple text such as “my name is John” is converted into unreadable code except for those with the right decryption key. However, you need to be clear about one thing, anyone can see the transactions that are recorded on the blockchain. The data contained within these transactions can be seen only by the rightful owner/owners. 

After reading these measures, you are sure to have a satisfactory answer to your query – “is blockchain safe?” This is why blockchain data security is considered powerful enough to safeguard digital credentials against fraud. 

Why should we use blockchain technology for data security?

You might still wonder how secure blockchain is or why it is secure. Below are some reasons which are likely to leave you with no doubt as to why and how blockchain is secure and why it should be used for data security. 

1. Unfeasible to attack

As the name suggests, Blockchain is a chain of digital “blocks.” These blocks contain transaction records. Since these records are not kept in a central location but instead distributed across everyone’s computers, phones, or servers of the blockchain network, the recorded data cannot be changed from a single node. All of these nodes are in sync and are continually updated. Moreover, these blocks are linked to each other with the help of unique identifiers, which are in the form of cryptographic hashes. 

Hackers could quickly attack traditional networks because all the information was stored in a central repository. Information stored in blockchains is unfeasible to attack because the data is decentralized across peer-to-peer networks. If an attempt is made to alter or hack data from one node, others will automatically get to know about such an attempt, and consequently, the attempt can be successfully thwarted.  

2. Offer secure data storage

Each of the blocks contains transaction records. The blocks form a chain, as each is linked to all the blocks before and after. This makes it almost impossible for hackers to tamper with transaction records. This is because if a hacker attempts to change one block, he would have to change the record in all the blocks linked to the targeted block to ensure that no one detects the tampering of records. 

Cryptography is used to secure the records on a Blockchain. Each participant in a blockchain network is assigned a key to their transactions as a personal digital signature. As soon as the record is changed without the consent of the majority of the network, the peer network will get a notification that something has happened. Early notification is immensely helpful in preventing any further damage. You can thus see how the developers have ensured privacy and security in blockchain technology. 

3. Opening new opportunities for the banking sector

The banking sector is slowly but steadily replacing traditional security measures with high-tech ones. Blockchain technology is one such measure. Blockchain technology, if used shrewdly, can revolutionize the way banks function.

Since Blockchain guarantees the security of all transaction records, it can significantly reduce the number of finance-related crimes. Since the transactions between the bank and its customer are immutable, this information can be referred to as and when needed. This will promote transparency in transactions. 

Blockchain speeds up the transaction process by eliminating third parties in the case of transactions between customers. This makes it easily possible to exchange currency at a lower rate than those charged by the banks. 

It can be safely predicted that the use of Blockchain in the banking sector will grow exponentially.  It can be one of the best measures against money laundering and fraud. 

4. Provide encryption & validation

Blockchain ensures that your valuable data is encrypted, which means that your data is converted into a code to prevent unauthorized access. This makes it immensely difficult to modify your data. You can also secure your data by saving a cryptographic signature of your file or document on a blockchain. This way, you do not need to save the entire file/document on the Blockchain. 

Since Blockchain has a decentralized nature, you can easily cross-check the cryptographic file signatures across all the ledgers and nodes on the blockchain network and verify whether they have been changed or not. If someone modifies a record, the signature becomes invalid. Thus you can verify from time to time whether your documents are safe or not.

5. Decentralised method of securing data

Since Blockchain technology has a decentralized nature, it does not depend on one particular control point. Each node on the blockchain has a complete copy of the data. This lack of a central authority makes it even more secure, as data blocks cannot be modified from one computer. Without a central authority, Blockchain depends on consensus protocols across peer-to-peer networks. 

Blockchain security examples

A lot of companies are shifting towards blockchain technology for security purposes.  The financial sector has a 46% market share in the blockchain technology market. A few examples have been listed below to demonstrate how various types of organizations are using blockchain technology to secure data from the risks of tampering – 

1. Mobilecoin

Location: San Francisco, California

Mobilecoin attempts to develop an easy-to-use, secure, and user-friendly cryptocurrency, especially for businesses that do not have enough resources to independently avail of practice-ledger security measures. 

Mobilecoin’s cryptocurrency does away with third-party transaction vendors. Instead, it keeps all the transaction data between two parties encrypted. It is currently working with Facebook Messenger, Signal and WhatsApp. 

2. Coinbase

Location: San Francisco, California

This California-based cryptocurrency company is an exchange that allows the buying and selling of digital currency. You can trade anything from Bitcoin to Ethereum to Litecoin on this company’s encrypted blockchain platform. 

Since it runs entirely on encryption, it is almost impossible to be hacked. Coinbase stores passwords and wallets in a highly secure database. Employees must undergo a strict background check to ensure the safety of their crypto. 

3. J.P Morgan

Location: New York

J.P. Morgan is the biggest and most renowned financial institution in the United States. It has built an enterprise-focused model of Ethereum, which is called Quorum. 

This platform processes private transactions by using blockchain technology. J.P. Morgan uses smart contracts on its Quorum network to create cryptographically assured and transparent transactions. 

Recently, J.P. Morgan issued a $150 million debar to the National Bank of Canada for one year. All aspects of this debt lifecycle, including origination, execution, and settlement of the debt, have been stored in blockchain.

4. Lockheed Martin

Location: Bethesda, Maryland

The U.S.-based Lockheed Martin is the first-of-its-kind defense contractor implementing blockchain security. It has joined hands with the cybersecurity firm Guardtime Federal and has implemented blockchain cybersecurity protocols in various aspects, such as software development, supply chain risk management, and engineering systems. 

Lockheed Martin aims to use blockchain technology to secure every step of its weapon development system and is also striving to ensure that the most vital and dangerous weapons be made incorruptible. 

Let’s wind-up

You had, in all probability, begun with the question – ” Is blockchain safe?” This article was an attempt to answer your query. Blockchain technology is a combo of security and transparency. Since all the blocks in the blockchain are interconnected, and each transaction is recorded in an encrypted form across all the blockchain network nodes, the chances of tampering with data are almost negligible. It is a unique way to manage data and address issues such as data security.

To know more about how blockchain technology can be used to secure data transactions, connect with Parangat Technologies. 

Do you think Blockchain and AI are a good match? Although the combination of blockchain and Artificial Intelligence is still a largely undiscovered area in the business industry. Data handling gets easier in AI due to the blockchain model, which ensures data security. 

However, blockchain technology is the distributed, decentralized, immutable, and shared ledger used to store encrypted data and record transactions across many computers. On the other hand, AI is the brain that helps in analytics and data-driven decisions. 

Both technologies have their complexities in the business firms and IT sectors, but the combination of artificial intelligence and blockchain are beneficial for each other.

In this article, we will look forward to the AI and blockchain combo, benefits, and challenges in the industry. 

Benefits of combining blockchain and AI

You may think that combining two hyped technologies might not sound promising. But Blockchain technology and AI help businesses handle data securely and make decisions effectively. The combination is ideal for any business, including finance, online marketing, healthcare, software development firm, etc. Below are the benefits of combining blockchain and AI:

1. Authenticity:

Apart from data security, the combination of blockchain and AI results in data authenticity. It is one of the chief benefits of the AI and blockchain combo. Because the blockchain model encrypts and stores sensitive data like medical notes, personalized recommendations, etc. Hence, registering an event on a blockchain model means proving data authenticity. Also, Artificial Intelligence helps in the analysis part and thus enhances the data authentication. 

2. Automation:

The blockchain and AI combo bring new value to business processes by introducing automation and helps businesses to save time and work more on goals to stand out in the competitive market. It verifies data transactions and management, performs background data verification, reduces human error, removes friction, adds new technology, increases speedy operation, efficiency, etc. Machine learning in blockchain is another component that results in automation.

3. Augmentation:

It is mandatory to know about augmentation or scalability to grow in the competitive business market. As blockchain is perfect for storing and handling data in an organization, on the other hand, AI is for increasing security, which indeed helps in augmentation. Scalability enhances the network to handle an increased load of transactions and increase the number of nodes in the network. Hence, the combo of artificial intelligence and blockchain is beneficial in augmentation or scalability. The below chart shows the growth of the Blockchain and AI market:

4. Accessing and managing the data market:

Accessing and managing the data market concept is tightly explained around the security system of the combo of artificial intelligence and blockchain. It is due to this reason that blockchain can store data, and AI helps in managing those data. However, big business firms have access to large volumes of data for AI processes, but small business firms do not have access to it. But AI and blockchain models help small business firms to access and manage the data market in a new way. 

5. Optimizing energy consumption:

Data handling and mining consume a lot of energy. Handling or extracting data is not easy and is one of the hindrances of the new technological advances. But one solution is Machine learning in blockchain. There are some flaws in the blockchain model that can easily intrude upon by hackers. However, programming languages eliminate and enhance security systems to release and transfer data securely. Hence, it results in improved optimization of energy consumption. 

6. Improving smart contracts:

Another chief benefit Blockchain and AI combo are to improve contracts in business. Over the internet, public users share millions of unstructured data, and big business firms try to restructure data for analysis. Thus, business firms use integrated blockchain development with AI to eliminate data structure errors and use the information for business growth and development. Hence, it benefits in improving contracts essential for data retrieving. 

7. Energy-saving and cost-efficient IT architecture:

For energy-saving and cost-efficient IT architecture, the business must adopt the blockchain and AI combo models. Many companies and business firms share the same database for efficient and convenient operation but handling the database is an issue. But blockchain and AI make it easier. It manages data, verifies sources, transfers data securely at an affordable rate, and saves time and energy. Thus, the ai blockchain cryptocurrency model is ideal for energy savings and cost-efficient IT architecture. 

What benefits does AI provide in terms of technology?

AI is everywhere. Whether marketing or finance management, data analysis, or healthcare management system. The concept of the AI model was vague, but in the last few years, AI has dominated all business firms and organizations for efficient operations and data handling security. However, 53% of organizations and business firm says that AI is a very important tool for their business success. Here are some benefits of AI in terms of technology:

1. Increased Efficiency:

The AI model enables humans to be efficient and does complex tasks in a second. It does not have limitations like humans and has a lot of energy. However, the AI can perform small, repetitive tasks faster, complete time-consuming and complex tasks, etc., which the human workforce cannot complete even in hours or days. 

2. Improved Workflows:

One of the crucial benefits of AI is to improve workflows. The AI-produced Deep learning technologies such as natural language processing (NLP) and automated speech recognition (ASR) enhanced workflows in the education sector, healthcare industry, etc. 

3. Lower Human Error Rates:

Over the years, AI has been transforming every walk of life. You might agree that humans cannot do complex calculations and get tired. Also, repetitive tasks are prone to human errors, and humans tend to lose concentration. But it is not the case with AI. It never gets tired and works with zero error. 

4. Deeper Data Analysis:

Business firms are all about data, but what is its primary use? AI-driven data analytics can help companies make better decisions for their upcoming business models. Manual analysis is time-consuming. Hence, the AI systems quickly find relevant information based on past data records, identify trends and offer recommendations for better decision-making. 

5. More Informed Decision Making:

Informed decision-making is helpful for the business workforce and provides more information about the data retrieving system. It helps business leaders to understand the data algorithm and implement goals and aspirations on the right path. However, manual data mining is not always accurate. So, AI helps in more informed decision-making plans.

AI is beneficial in many ways. From informed decision-making to deeper data analysis, improving operation to lowering calculation error, AI is one and all in today’s business technological tactics. Moreover, AI works 24×7 without interruption and is beneficial for handling data. It is also for people who need assistance to live independently.

Essential Applications of AI and Blockchain

The ai blockchain cryptocurrency model has changed the course of doing business. Doing business is unworthy without the use of hyped technologies. However, AI and blockchain are dependent on one another. The blockchain model makes AI more coherent and clear. Well, here are some essential applications of AI and the Blockchain model: 

1. The computing power:

The blockchain processes encrypted information on a computer and needs considerable processing power. It makes the calculation to mine bitcoins clumsier. But AI makes the calculation process easier in an effective way. Thus, one of the main applications of AI and blockchain is to make complex calculations easy on the computer.

2. Creating variable data sets:

Another application of Blockchain and AI is to create variable data sets. The blockchain model generates decentralized and transparent networks, and the blockchain governing bodies can retrieve them anytime. But AI does not communicate with transparent networks. Instead, it makes the blockchain model more scalable by catering to variable data sets used in decision-making. 

3. Protecting information:

Everyone knows about the protecting information application of the AI and blockchain model. When the blockchain and AI model work together, it enhances data security so that no intruder can misuse data. It protects sensitive and personal information in a backup system ensuring the safety and security of any company’s assets. 

4. Tracking information:

Data monetization or tracking information is valuable for businesses to generate massive revenue. Tracking data is helpful in many ways. The Blockchain model enables business firms to use data cryptographically and protect public information for the economy suit. Hence, business firms use Blockchain and AI combo for tracking valuable information. 

5. Supply chain management:

The Blockchain and AI combo are suitable for the supply chain management. Every industry is a complex network and means handling sensitive and personal information. Thus, the artificial intelligence and blockchain cryptocurrency model work closely to manage supply chain systems for efficient and convenient operation. 

Challenges Of Combining Blockchain With Machine Learning

The blockchain and machine learning combo gives high-performance and valuable solutions to business firms and organizations, and there is no doubt about it. However, amidst the challenges, the combo is on the trendy list, which helps to form a secure and decentralized system. So, read below some of the challenges of the artificial intelligence and blockchain combination:

1. Suitability:

The first challenge of combing blockchain with machine learning is suitability. If you do not know about the source of data and the entity number in the dispersed system is high, then blockchain is the most suitable model. Moreover, a simple database system is for critical speed. Hence, it is necessary to understand the architecture of the system. It also helps business firms to know about data sources and find an efficient way to handle them.

2. Infrastructure:

Another crucial challenge of blockchain with a machine learning combo is understanding blockchain products. Many blockchain-based applications use specific hardware and network infrastructure for management, mining hardware, decentralized storage, communication protocols, etc. However, the infrastructure is the pillar of the machine learning model. Businesses implement major financial decisions through the blockchain and machine learning model. 

3. Privacy:

The blockchain model is not a secure privacy model. Any blockchain network can easily access the data created by devices and saved on the blockchain. It raises an issue about the privacy policy for keeping data private or confidential in the system. Also, using machine language on this type of blockchain creates limitations in predicting and analyzing data. However, a private blockchain network solves the privacy issues and restricts the network from accessing it. 

4. Memory:

Memory constraint on the blockchain network is another challenge of combing blockchain with machine learning. So, when the data block gets uploaded to the blockchain network, it expands its size to store data. On the other hand, storing useless consumes storage and may harm your device. Thus, an increase in data in the network creates memory constraints and affects smooth operation. Hence, Machine learning in blockchain creates issues in memory management and handling data in the blockchain network.

5. Implementation:

The large-scale blockchain network consists of massive transactions and raises a concern. However, it is difficult for the blockchain network to manage the increase in network bandwidth. Thus, blockchain with machine learning faces another crucial challenge in handling transactions and data implementation. Also, reducing the usage of addition of data blocks and transactions can meet the inevitable demand of the system. 

These are the unresolved difficulties and challenges of blockchain with machine learning combination. Apart from the benefits, knowing the challenges is helpful for organizations to understand better the technology and its usage.

The Future Business Model: AI Blockchain Cryptocurrency Model

Still, the area of blockchain cryptocurrency technology and Artificial intelligence is undiscovered. The convergence of the two hyped technologies has changed the course of business future. The ai blockchain cryptocurrency model is suitable for enhancing data security, eliminating human error, helping in data analytics, etc. Moreover, it motivates the workforce and fuels business operations. 

The Blockchain and AI combo is a perfect example of outsourcing application development software. It is cost-efficient, increases team productivity, and helps business firms to deliver the project within the stipulated time. Also, any business, startup, healthcare industry, food production industry, IT sector, etc., can avail of the benefits of outsourcing application development software. 

And yes, the blockchain and AI models are a good match. Today, doing business is worthwhile only when you know the best use of innovation and inventions. So, still not using the best outsourcing application development software? Implement the latest technology software and take your business next level.

Connect with the Parangat team, who are skilled professionals to help your business with blockchain and AI models.

Big Data has been around for a while, and blockchain technology is currently riding the top of the wave of popularity. What are the potential outcomes of combining these two innovations?

The volume of transactional data stored within various ledgers is getting enormous as cryptocurrencies, and other real-world applications of blockchain technology become more prominent. Using traditional cloud storage providers like AWS or Azure to store these massive data lakes would be extremely expensive.

As a result, blockchain technology and big data have seen a lot of growth because businesses generate many data. At this crucial point, blockchain technology emerges as a reliable, cost-effective, and decentralized ledger to keep anonymous data generated daily.

Big data is a game-changer in today’s tech-savvy world, allowing businesses to use real-time pioneering insights to improve performance. Extensive data services assist governments, organizations, and even small and medium-sized businesses.

Read on to understand how combining these two technologies can create new possibilities for innovation in your business.

Current Challenges of the Big Data Industry

By implementing a big data strategy, organizations can reduce operational costs, shorten the time to market, and develop innovative products. On the other hand, Enterprises face dozens of new significant data challenges in getting initiatives from the drawing board to execution.

Here are some of the most significant problems that arise while dealing with Big Data:

1. Professionals with Inadequate Knowledge

Companies require trained data specialists to run these latest technologies and massive data tools. Data scientists, data analysts, and data engineers will be necessary to make sense of massive datasets and work with the technologies.

One of the most significant challenges of Big Data companies is the lack of highly skilled professionals. Data processing tools have advanced rapidly, but most experts have not.

For Example:

When employees are not aware of using or storing the data correctly, they might misuse or ignore the data leading to inefficient analytics. They might not even use the database properly for the backup, and these mistakes would lead to data scarcity.

2. Mishandling and Misunderstanding of the Massive Data

Due to a lack of understanding, companies fail to succeed in their Big Data efforts. Employees may be unaware of what data is, stored and processed, or where it originates. Even if data specialists have a clear picture of what’s going on, others may not.

Employees who don’t comprehend the importance of knowledge storage may be unable to keep a backup of critical information, and they couldn’t save data in databases appropriately. As a result, it’s tough to find this crucial information when it’s needed.

For Example:

The sole purpose of tackling big data and analytics is to understand the massive data and the ability to segregate and use it most appropriately. If the employees lag behind these crucial tactics, the outcome will lead to blunders due to data usage in the wrong places.

3. Issues with Constantly Growing Data

The proper storage of these vast amounts of data is one of the most critical concerns of big data. The amount of data saved in data centers and company databases continually and large data sets are difficult to manage as they multiply.

Documents, movies, audio files, and text files are among the unstructured data sources.

For Example:

Companies often introduce different data handling tools to acknowledge their growing data. The employees should keep pace with understanding the mechanisms to integrate them correctly. Any misuse in handling the tools or overlooking the data stored at multiple places in multiple formats would lead to incorrect results.

4. Confusion Regarding Big Data Tool Selection

Businesses are confused when selecting the simplest possible big data tool for their vast projects. Is HBase or Cassandra the most accessible system for storing data? Is Hadoop MapReduce sufficient, or will Spark be a far superior data analytics and storage solution?

These issues trouble companies, but they aren’t always able to find solutions. They often make poor selections and use inefficient tech. As a result, resources such as money, time, effort, and work hours are spent in vain.

For Example:

Updating the tools or introducing new tools to handle the ever-growing data and produce accurate results is never a wrong idea. But, choosing the appropriate tool for your data is always a challenge that troubles organizations and an incorrect tool selection incompatible with your data are of no use.

5. Data Security

One of the most significant issues of enormous data is securing these massive quantities of data. It is common for companies to put data security on the back burner while focusing on interpreting, preserving, and analyzing their data sets.

Unprotected Data repositories can become breeding grounds for malicious hackers, so this is rarely a wise choice. An information breach can cost a company up to $3.7 million.

For Example:

Data and its security should always go hand in hand. Companies often require highly skilled cybersecurity professionals to handle their data for the following purposes:

1.     Data segregation

2.     Data Encryption

3.     Access Control

4.     Identity Control

5.     Real-time monitoring

6.     Implementing end-point security, etc

What is the relationship between Big Data and Blockchain?

 

Blockchain has the potential to be a valuable tool for storing data online. In a transaction, different parties store transactional information on different ledgers.

With the help of Blockchain, all of these parties can get access to a single network.

The network can record transactions, and all the involved parties can verify these transactions. It will be simple to get these details because all the information will be kept in the Blockchain.

Users can easily view historical transactions because of the Blockchain technology’s design. It becomes simple to trace the origins of a transaction.

How can Blockchain Transform Big Data?

Here are some of the factors how Blockchain can serve as a driving force behind Big Data:

1. Data Exchange

Thanks to data sharing services like Dock, working professionals may maintain their employment profiles on a single platform rather than working through various profiles on multiple job sites.

Dock also collects credentials and other experiences from various platforms and stores them all on the blockchain, allowing professionals to build comprehensive profiles.

Study results show that 73% of corporate data isn’t used for data analysis. However, blockchain has the potential to alleviate these constraints by making data sharing more secure and straightforward without incurring significant infrastructure expenses.

2. Decentralization

The high expense is the most significant barrier to incorporating big data analytics into existing infrastructure. Today, blockchain solutions make data analytics tools more accessible by decentralizing the necessary technology.

3. Data Monetization and Sharing

In today’s world, data is the most crucial piece of information, and combining blockchain and big data can help advance the way data analytics is shared and monetized.

Customers can acquire negotiating power over firms, allowing them to choose which organizations have access to their data and which do not.

Benefits of Using Blockchain Technology in Big Data

1. Improved Data Quality

As diverse sources collect data in different formats, data scientists spend most of their work on data integration. By storing data on the blockchain, you can improve the quality of the data because it is well organized and complete. As a result, data scientists may work with high-quality data to make more accurate real-time forecasts.

2. Strengthening Data Security

As the number of devices linked to the Internet grows, the amount of data kept in third-party places such as the cloud multiplies, introducing new concerns, such as data breaches or threats from unscrupulous third parties.

Traditional security solutions, such as firewalls, cannot solve the issue of big data since companies have no control over the data because it is not held within the organization’s network perimeter. The use of blockchain to store large amounts of data has the potential to solve this problem.

The blockchain network’s encrypted and decentralized data storage makes illegal access to the data extremely difficult.

3. Preventing Fraud

To detect fraudulent transactions, existing extensive data systems rely on examining patterns in historical data. As a result, big data will not be able to tackle the problem of fraudulent financial transactions.

Financial institutions can monitor each transaction in real-time thanks to the storage of massive data in the blockchain, allowing them to examine possibly fraudulent transactions on the fly.

As a result, incorporating blockchain into big data can assist financial organizations in preventing fraud and safeguarding their consumers.

4. Streamlining Data Access

By streamlining data access online, the usage of blockchain would simplify the life cycle of big data analytics. Authorized users can access secure, trusted data without going through multiple checks by involving multiple departments in an organization in a typical blockchain.

5. Real-Time Analysis

Since blockchain records every transaction, it allows for real-time big data analytics. The banks and financial institutes can settle the cross-border transactions, including significant sums, in near real-time as the blockchain-integrated big data analytics enables the financial institutes to settle the transactions rapidly.

Banks can also monitor changes in data in real-time, allowing them to make real-time decisions such as stopping transactions.

6. Enhanced Data Sharing

The use of blockchain in conjunction with big data allows service providers to exchange data with other parties while minimizing the danger of data5 leakage.

The blockchain can also reduce the amount of repeated data analysis since each experiment is recorded.

Real-Life Scenarios of Blockchain in Big Data

Blockchain is the technology behind cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin and Ethereum. On the other hand, big data is a more advanced data science notion that involves a larger dataset with greater diversity, quantity, and velocity. We examine these datasets for patterns, associations, and trends of interest.

Blockchain, interestingly, is a form of distributed ledger that irreversibly records transactions. Blockchain has a high level of trust, removing the need for third parties to control transactions and ensuring that data is unchangeable.

Many applications in data science use blockchains to ensure data integrity while doing data analysis and sharing. Following is a list of some of the most popular real-time applications of Blockchain and Big Data:

1. Storj

Storj is an end-to-end decentralized storage project that uses unused hardware and bandwidth to enable peer-to-peer storage contract authentication between providers and users.

It all begins with encrypting client-side files, split into “shards.” These shards are kept three times on the farmer’s side to ensure backups.

Only the client has access to the data, providing greater security than standard centralized cloud services. Renters can check on the farmers’ files and pay for the storage system’s upkeep using the Storj cryptocurrency. Renters only pay for the space they use, with no additional setup costs or user restrictions fees.

2. Omnilytics

Omnilytics is a big data analytics blockchain platform that gives insights into the sales, marketing, and retail industries. It integrates data from many industries using blockchain, big data analytics, machine learning, artificial intelligence, and other technologies.

The platform offers data analytics and related services such as competitor benchmarking, trend research, and pricing analysis for clients. Smart contracts, distributed data fingerprinting, data exchange, and other services use blockchain to track data trends and provide incentives through micropayments.

3. Provenance

Provenance is a blockchain platform primarily used in supply chain management that aids in collecting and sharing critical product information in a reliable, safe, and accessible manner.

The six participants in the blockchain architecture are the producer, the manufacturer, the registrar, standard organizations, agents such as certifiers or auditors, and ultimately the clients.

The protocol gives consumers access to information about the items’ origins, transit through various points in the supply chain, product quality, and environmental effect.

Putting it All Together

However, enterprises should be ready to deal with several drawbacks and complications when implementing a blockchain to improve big data, just as they are with any innovative solution. We have a specialized staff of highly skilled blockchain developers at Parangat who are well-versed in all aspects of this fascinating technology. Contact us, and we’ll gladly help you implement blockchain technology into your extensive data services.

Blockchain was introduced in the year 2009 and faced a lot of criticism. Only a few acknowledged the disruptive future of this technology. But now, the Trust, Applications, and Benefits of blockchain technology are the other way around.

According to fortunly statistics, by 2018, about 90% of European and US banks have begun investigating blockchain’s potential. In addition, 74 % of IT executives believe blockchain technology has enormous business potential. In 2021, 24% of businesses invested between $5 million and $10 million in the blockchain. Blockchain is a part of Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT). It is a public ledger that records all kinds of transactions online. In addition, blockchain technology helps in storing any kind of information with Transparency, Security, Immutability, and Traceability.

Blockchain offers many other spellbound features for various industries and applications. Let’s dive into the top 10 benefits of blockchain technology with real-time examples.

Blockchain Technology: Top 10 Benefits

1. Enhanced Security & Privacy

Blockchain introduces a new concept called consensus mechanism, which states that every record should be agreed upon and accepted by the network’s users before placing it on the blockchain network.

Each record on the blockchain is linked to previous records, and all records are interconnected. This mechanism ensures that any data change in any record will change the record’s identity. However, it breaks the identity of records in the blockchain and makes us aware that the data is in breach. All the transaction records in the blockchain are encrypted end-to-end, enhancing the privacy of each user’s data, and promoting high security.

2. Decentralized Structure

Decentralization is the most significant trait of blockchain technology. Traditional data storage and transaction systems are always centralized, consisting of only one server. And if the server fails for any reason, the whole data vanishes.

With blockchain technology’s decentralized structure and unique characteristics, the data is distributed across the internet and transparent to every blockchain user. Moreover, there is no aspect of data degradation or unavailability with decentralization. Therefore, any user across the globe can access any information using any data, provided he is authorized.

Example:

Contura Energy,  a major coal supplier in the United States, relies on obsolete letters of credit to conduct international payments. Banks issue these letters of credit on behalf of clients.

Here, an intermediary bank serves as a guarantee of payment for buyers. Though this approach is reliable, it is labor-intensive, slow, and inefficient.

Contura Energy recognizes the importance of digitizing and automating its letter of credit procedure. However, the challenge they face is ensuring trust and verification between merchants and customers. Using AWS, they’re developing a decentralized, blockchain-based solution to make international trade payments more efficient, cost-effective, and risk-free. In addition, a decentralized system improves openness by allowing all participants to view the data and documentation in real-time.

3. Cost Reduction

Blockchain technology eliminates the intermediaries, which is a significant cost cut down for businesses. By reducing manual tasks such as data aggregation and amendment, blockchain’s consensus mechanism and encryption technology simplify reporting and auditing operations.

The decentralized feature will also cut down maintenance charges due to eliminating central servers.

Example:

Assume a business owner intends to start an internet store selling handmade, artisanal goods from her hometown. However, she wants her high-quality items to be available to consumers across the country, so she hires a shipping firm to handle the delivery.

However, if she employs a blockchain-based smart contract, she doesn’t require an intermediary to establish the relationship between her and the shipping vendor. In addition, both parties have encryption keys that allow them and their authorized users to see contracts.

Smart contracts are virtually tamper-proof, and once documented, the original agreements are unchangeable. As a result, everyone saves time and money as they don’t have to coordinate with an intermediary service to facilitate the transactions.

4. Improved Efficiency

Traditional processes require a lot of manual intervention and take more time and effort. But with blockchain technology and its decentralized functionalities, we can eliminate manual labor and the intervention of intermediaries.

Employing Smart contracts, proof of work, and proof of stake, make the operations more efficient and speedy.

Example:

All financial corporations strive to improve the efficiency of their payments systems, ledgers, reconciliation, and maintenance to boost productivity and provide reliability.

Incorporating blockchain technology can help encrypt the joining ledgers, monitoring the transactions in real-time without relying on intermediaries. This means payments and other services can be processed quickly and efficiently. It also saves the time and energy of the inter-operations of the business.

5. Traceability 

With blockchain, companies can build a supply chain that includes vendors and suppliers. In the traditional supply chain, tracing objects is difficult, leading to problems such as counterfeiting and product loss.

Blockchain has made the operations of the supply chain industry more transparent. Tracking the commodities allows the parties in the supply chain to ensure they are not misused or replaced. Businesses can also use it to track their internal operations using blockchain traceability systems.

Example:

Walmart is the best example in this scenario. They use blockchain technology to keep track of groceries and other products. They can also display the history of the development in real-time. Traceability promoted trust among the users and reduced monitoring costs.

6. Personal Control Of Data

In blockchain technology, you have complete control over your digital data. Your data is well-protected by blockchain, and your ownership is never affected.

You have complete control over which aspects of your digital data you choose to share with whom and for how long. All these ownership functionalities are incorporated using smart contracts.

In the blockchain, every user has direct and decentralized access to any of their data without relying on third parties. Also, users can have direct contact with any commodities online and make direct contracts and transactions with excellent transparency and trust.

7. Immutability

One of the fascinating aspects of the blockchain is that no one can modify the data once the data is recorded. You can also benefit from obtaining a permanent record since all transactions are date and time-stamped.

When the data is immutable, no entity can modify, manipulate, replace or falsify the data. The blockchain network immediately detects such a breach, and the consensus mechanism will not permit the change to happen.

Real-time Example:

Fluree changes how people think about data ownership, access, and security. Fluree is a distributed ledger that uses an ACID-compliant blockchain to record every state change in history as an immutable changelog item. In addition, FlureeDB, a graph query engine, enables advanced query capabilities.

Fluree is a practical and powerful platform for building, distributing, and scaling custom blockchains by bringing blockchain to the data tier.

8. Transparency

An organization can use blockchain technology to create a decentralized, transparent system visible to everyone on the network but accessible only to the authorized ones.

Peers are responsible for carrying out and validating transactions on a blockchain. Although not all peers participate in the consensus method, they can participate in the validation process.

The consensus approach helps validate every transaction and activity on the blockchain network. Each node keeps a copy of the transaction record once validated. As each user on the network holds information about the transaction record, this is how blockchain promotes transparency among its users.

Example:

Businesses are using blockchain technology to incorporate it into their supply chain management. For example, to track and trace the operations of their goods and services both internally and externally.

Businesses need the trust of their customers to grow, and customers trust the companies that provide transparency.

9. Tokenization

Tokenization means transforming tangible and non-physical assets into blockchain tokens. In simple terms, tokenization is the digital way of representing ownership of any data or asset in the form of tokens. As a result, the concept of blockchain tokenization has gained tremendous popularity recently. When looking at the many types of blockchain tokenization, you’ll encounter digital assets that can trade within a blockchain project’s ecosystem. Non-fungible tokens (NFTs), platform tokens, utility tokens, and governance tokens are just a few of the various tokenization options available on the blockchain.

Example:

To tokenize $1 million in the blockchain world, the issuer must first get authorization, deposit the funds in a bank account, and issue 1 million tokens worth $1.

Users can exchange these tokens without requiring the delivery of an asset. Still, the token holder can present them to the issuer and receive dollars in their account if they meet the specific requirements.

10. Better Customer Experience

Implementing blockchain technology to provide value to customers is gaining traction in almost every industry. As a result, companies are becoming more aware of the importance of blockchain, and several firms are incorporating it into their operations to connect customers with the brand.

In particular, blockchain technology would improve client relationships in organizations with bureaucratic management by providing increased security and speed. However, we should highlight that it has benefits in other fields as well, such as telecommunications, medicine and health, copyright, and online sales, to name a few.

Example:

IN the traditional business processes, customers must provide an enormous quantity of data before completing a transaction on any e-Commerce site. Businesses need the information to complete the transaction and confirm who they claim to be.

As the interaction between the customer and the corporation, blockchain technology stores the keys to a customer’s identification in a secure, independent location and authenticates that identity independently.

Organizations and their customers can rely on Blockchain IDs because no one can modify them. In this way, blockchains allowed clients to take back control of their data.

Key Takeaway

Due to these profound benefits of blockchain technology, businesses in almost every industry are migrating from traditional systems to blockchain-based operations.

However, the critical point is that blockchain technology is still a novice technology. Therefore, like any other newly introduced technology, enterprises should be ready to address the complications and drawbacks while trying to implement it for any of their business transformations. Nevertheless, the good news is, at Parangat, our specialized staff of highly-skilled blockchain professionals will identify your visions, and impediments in the process and will provide you with the most feasible solution for implementing blockchain technology in business operations alongside providing you with the full-fledged support from project ideation to deployment.