Blockchain Archiving for Communication Integrity
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing systems for archiving digital communications face challenges in ensuring the integrity and admissibility of records in legal proceedings, particularly in maintaining a tamper-proof record of digital communications for eDiscovery and compliance with regulations.
Innovation Solution
The use of blockchain technology to record and verify digital communication transactions, ensuring the integrity and permanence of records by creating a distributed ledger that can validate the authenticity and integrity of archived communications.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional archiving systems are used to store digital communications, then storage and retrieval are straightforward, but the integrity and tamper-proof nature of records cannot be ensured
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces blockchain technology as an intermediary between the archiving system and the stored communication records. The blockchain serves as a trusted mediator that verifies and secures the integrity of archived communications without requiring the archiving system itself to become complex. Communication metadata and hashes are submitted to the blockchain, which provides cryptographic verification and immutability, thus ensuring reliability while keeping the archiving system relatively simple.
2Reliability
If blockchain technology is implemented to ensure tamper-proof records, then integrity and admissibility in court are improved, but system complexity and implementation difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the complex blockchain verification functionality from the core archiving system and places it in a separate, dedicated blockchain infrastructure. The archiving system only needs to submit communication metadata and hashes to the blockchain network, while the blockchain handles the complex cryptographic verification, consensus mechanisms, and immutable storage. This separation allows the archiving system to remain simple while still benefiting from blockchain's tamper-proof capabilities.
3Reliability
If all communication records are archived for legal compliance, then admissibility in court is improved, but storage requirements and processing time increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses cryptographic hashing to create compact representations (copies) of communication records that are stored on the blockchain. Instead of storing entire communication contents, the system stores cryptographic hashes and essential metadata that serve as verifiable proofs of the communications' existence and integrity. These hash copies are much smaller than the original communications but provide sufficient evidence for legal admissibility when combined with the ability to verify against original records.
Data Source
AI summary
A method of verifying communications between a first phone and a second phone includes the steps of: receiving at a server a communication between the first phone and the second phone, wherein at least one of the first phone and the second phone is designated for retention; at the server, sending the communication to a blockchain to preserve the integrity of the communication; at the server, storing the blockchain information with communication records, so that the communication integrity can be verified against the blockchain; and at the server, sending at least one of the blockchain information and the communication records to an electronic-discovery system so that the communication can be verified against the blockchain.