Systematizing Decentralization and Privacy: Lessons from 15 Years of Research and Deployments

Decentralized systems are a subset of distributed systems where multiple authorities control different components and no authority is fully trusted by all. This implies that any component in a decentralized system is potentially adversarial. We revise fifteen years of research on decentralization and privacy, and provide an overview of key systems, as well as key insights for designers of future systems. We show that decentralized designs can enhance privacy, integrity, and availability but also require careful trade-offs in terms of system complexity, properties provided, and degree of decentralization. These trade-offs need to be understood and navigated by designers. We argue that a combination of insights from cryptography, distributed systems, and mechanism design, aligned with the development of adequate incentives, are necessary to build scalable and successful privacy-preserving decentralized systems

An Analysis and Enumeration of the Blockchain and Future Implications

The blockchain is a relatively new technology that has grown in interest and potential research since its inception. Blockchain technology is dominated by cryptocurrency in terms of usage. Research conducted in the past few years, however, reveals blockchain has the potential to revolutionize several different industries. The blockchain consists of three major technologies: a peer-to-peer network, a distributed database, and asymmetrically encrypted transactions. The peer-to-peer network enables a decentralized, consensus-based network structure where various nodes contribute to the overall network performance. A distributed database adds additional security and immutability to the network. The process of cryptographically securing individual transactions forms a core service of the blockchain and enables semi-anonymous user network presence