Blockchain Transaction Verification via Hash Tree Attestations
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Solution Overview
Problem
There is a need to efficiently verify whether two parties agree on the membership of a set of blockchain transactions between them, especially for auditing purposes, without relying on centralized storage that may be vulnerable to tampering or data loss, and to ensure privacy by not exposing all transactions.
Innovation Solution
A method where each party reports their transactions to a third party and also records an attestation on the blockchain, using a hash tree structure to ensure consistency and privacy, allowing the third party to verify the agreement without storing all transaction details.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a third party stores all transaction details for verification, then verification capability is improved, but storage burden and vulnerability to tampering increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only the essential verification elements (attestations and hash values) from the complete transaction data. Instead of storing all transaction details, the system stores compact cryptographic representations that enable verification without requiring the third party to maintain comprehensive transaction records, thereby reducing storage burden while preserving verification capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses cryptographic hash functions to create compact copies of transaction data. The third party stores hash values and attestations that serve as verification copies rather than storing the actual transaction details. This allows verification of transaction integrity without requiring substantial storage capacity.
2Reliability
If all transactions are exposed for verification, then transparency is improved, but privacy of individual transactions deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies different levels of information disclosure to different elements of the system. The third party receives sufficient information to verify transaction agreements (transparency), while individual transaction details remain private. Each party's attestation contains only the information necessary for verification without exposing sensitive transaction data, achieving local quality in information disclosure.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces cryptographic hash functions and attestations as intermediaries between the parties and the third party. These intermediaries enable the third party to verify transaction agreements without directly accessing or exposing the underlying transaction details, thus maintaining privacy while achieving transparency in verification.
3Productivity
If centralized storage is used for transaction verification, then verification efficiency is improved, but vulnerability to tampering and data loss increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary anti-action by having parties create cryptographic attestations and store them on the blockchain before any potential tampering can occur. These preemptively stored attestations serve as immutable evidence that can counteract any future attempts to alter transaction records, thus preventing integrity issues rather than merely responding to them.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces the blockchain as an intermediary storage mechanism between the parties and the third party. Rather than relying solely on centralized storage vulnerable to tampering, the system uses the blockchain's distributed and immutable nature to store attestations, combining the efficiency of centralized verification with the integrity benefits of distributed storage.
Data Source
AI summary
A method, system and program enabling a third party to determine whether a first party and a second party agree on membership of a set of blockchain transactions transacting between the first and second party.