Hello,

I have been researching about blockchains and stuff and it all seems like a big scam. It’s not sustainable and can be replaced by a simple database.

is there any legitimate use cases of blockchains or it is all just a big scam?

  • Nibodhika@lemmy.world
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    10 hours ago

    How do you sync those copies? Whatever sync process you use could be abused to propagate wrong transactions into other banks unless you figure out a solution to the bizantine generals problems, other than a Blockchain I mean.

    • 18107@aussie.zone
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      9 hours ago

      Something similar to the way files (and bank transaction records) are modified on a drive. A first message indicating that a specific transaction is starting, a second message with the transaction, and a third message indicating the transaction is complete.

      If any message is not acknowledged, it can be resent (with an ID so it’s recognized as a duplicate), and if all else fails, flag a human.

      The system doesn’t need to be 100% accurate, just good enough that only a few humans are needed to fix the problems.

      The Byzantine Generals problem is only a problem if you need 100% certainty from both sides. If you’re willing to put up with 99.99% certainty, then network engineers have solved this problem many years ago.

      • Nibodhika@lemmy.world
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        2 hours ago

        Sure, but you’re making the assumption that no bank is a bad actor, which is the thing blockchains solve, you don’t need a Blockchain to circle money around between your friends, but it is needed when you introduce random persons who can screw the system.

        For example, let’s assume that you’re using public/private keys to ensure that only one bank can sign their own transaction and it’s easily verifiable, let’s also assume your id is the transaction hash which consists of sender, recipient, value and datetime (otherwise it’s super easy to send the same transaction with different values). Now I’m a rogue bank, how can I screw that system? Simple, I need to pay bank B for something, so I send him a transaction for it and at the same time I send every other bank that I’m draining my account to my friends bank C. B thinks I paid him, but every other bank thinks I gave my money to C, if B tries to spend it he will figure out that other banks don’t recognize that transaction, and even if he shows the transaction they also see the other one made to bank C with an earlier time which bank B never saw, which means I never actually paid bank B, even though B thought I did.