Internet Forum Message Posting with Distributed Ledger Integrity

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Solution Overview

Problem

Internet forums face issues with centralized control over user messages, leading to potential censorship and lack of transparency in message alterations, as well as reliance on external web service providers for storage and management.

Innovation Solution

Utilizing distributed ledger technology to record user messages and their transactions on a verifiable ledger, ensuring immutability and transparency through decentralized identifiers (DIDs), allowing users to maintain control over their digital identities and message integrity.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Device complexity

If user messages are stored on centralized long-term data storage, then storage cost is reduced and management is simplified, but control over user messages becomes centralized leading to potential censorship and lack of transparency

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvemessage management complexityVSAvoidmessage integrity and transparency

Core Design Contradiction:

Device complexityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The system segments message storage and control across multiple distributed nodes rather than centralizing it. Each node maintains a copy of the ledger with message hashes, distributing control and eliminating single-point censorship while maintaining manageable complexity through standardized protocols

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The distributed ledger acts as an intermediary between users and forum providers, recording message hashes and transactions immutably. This intermediary layer ensures transparency and prevents unauthorized alterations without requiring complex centralized management systems

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Quantity of substance

If external web service providers are commissioned to store and monitor user messages, then storage infrastructure cost is reduced, but control over user messages becomes centralized in third parties

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvestorage infrastructureVSAvoiduser control over messages

Core Design Contradiction:

Quantity of substanceVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

Users gain self-service control over their messages through cryptographic keys and digital signatures. Users can prove ownership, retrieve, or delete their own messages without relying on external providers, eliminating the need for costly third-party storage infrastructure while maximizing user control

Inventive Principle:

Principle #25Self-service

Solution Approach 2:

The system uses cryptographic hashes (copies) of messages stored on the distributed ledger instead of storing full message content on external servers. This approach eliminates the need for expensive external storage infrastructure while maintaining user control through decentralized access

Inventive Principle:

Principle #26Copying

3Device complexity

If centralized registries or certificate authorities are used for digital identities, then identity verification is simplified, but independence from centralized control is lost

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveidentity verification complexityVSAvoididentity independence

Core Design Contradiction:

Device complexityVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

The system extracts identity verification from centralized certificate authorities and implements it directly on the distributed ledger through cryptographic proofs. Users present digital signatures and verify their own identities without intermediaries, simplifying verification while achieving complete independence from centralized control

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

The distributed ledger serves multiple functions: storing message hashes, verifying user identities through cryptographic proofs, and enabling message retrieval. This multi-functional approach eliminates the need for separate centralized identity registries while maintaining simple verification processes

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

4Loss of substance

If user messages are deleted or altered by external providers, then storage space is optimized, but users cannot prove message removal or alteration

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvestorage space utilizationVSAvoidmessage history and integrity proof

Core Design Contradiction:

Loss of substanceVSLoss of information

Solution Approach 1:

The system records the hash of each message on the distributed ledger before any potential deletion or alteration. This preliminary recording creates an immutable proof of the message's existence and content, allowing users to verify whether messages were altered or deleted while enabling storage optimization by not retaining full message copies centrally

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Data Source

PatentUS12401520B2Method and apparatus for posting a user message of a user in an internet forum

Publication Date: 2025.08.26 SONY GROUP CORP

AI summary

A method comprising receiving, at a forum network node, a user request for posting a user message in an internet forum from a user network node. The user network node is associated with a digital identity of the user. The forum network node is associated with a digital identity of the internet forum. The forum network node has an interface to a distributed ledger. The user request indicates a parent post the user message relates to. The parent post is part of the internet forum. The method further comprises generating, at the forum network node, transaction data for the user message and a hash of the transaction data. The transaction data comprises a hash of the user message and a hash of the parent post. The method further comprises writing the hash of the transaction data and the transaction data on the distributed ledger.