If you don’t understand terms like cryptocurrency, blockchain and Bitcoin, you probably should soon, because it’s going to be the next big thing in Malaysia.

Many Malaysians might have heard of Bitcoin through the WannaCry debacle, where cybercrooks lock someone’s computer then demand payments in Bitcoin before they release the data.

Some think that blockchain and Bitcoin are the same thing, but that’s not accurate.

They do consist of the same components; blockchain was the core technology that made Bitcoin the force that it is today. Essentially, blockchain was first used to record and legitimize Bitcoin transactions.

However, blockchain is basically a ledger of data that can’t be tampered with. Or, as the big boys call it, “immutable”.

Blockchain ledgers aren’t centralised, and the data is sent to a large network instead of being kept on one server.

It’s immutable like how a sent email is immutable. For example, if I were to accidentally send an embarrassing photo of my teenage goth phase to all of my email contacts, I can probably delete that email from my outbox.

But I can’t access everyone else’s emails to delete that same picture from theirs. It’s a check and balance crafted directly into the code.

Bitcoin’s recent rise in popularity as a possible investment strategy comes in part because of this tamper-proof property in blockchain.

Businesses who have no reason to trust each other can have the cold-hard facts recorded and presented to each other with confidence. It’s not a foolproof solution, but a step forward.

Not to mention, that data is available online. But it isn’t just for business deals.

Big Australian banks have recently successfully used blockchain instead of paper for commercial leasing, and they’re not the only banks who believe in blockchain. The medical marijuana industry in the USA is going to be actively controlled by a blockchain-based technology.

Courtesy: vulcanpost.com