{"id":2571,"date":"2022-11-06T18:38:36","date_gmt":"2022-11-06T18:38:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/metaschool.so\/articles\/?p=2571"},"modified":"2023-10-10T12:02:58","modified_gmt":"2023-10-10T12:02:58","slug":"immutable-blockchain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/metaschool.so\/articles\/immutable-blockchain\/","title":{"rendered":"Immutable"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_56_1 ez-toc-wrap-left counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title \" >Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/metaschool.so\/articles\/immutable-blockchain\/#What_does_immutable_mean_%F0%9F%93%96\" title=\"What does immutable mean? \ud83d\udcd6\">What does immutable mean? \ud83d\udcd6<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/metaschool.so\/articles\/immutable-blockchain\/#How_immutability_in_crypto_works\" title=\"How immutability in crypto works\">How immutability in crypto works<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/metaschool.so\/articles\/immutable-blockchain\/#Benefits_of_blockchain_immutability\" title=\"Benefits of blockchain immutability\">Benefits of blockchain immutability<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/metaschool.so\/articles\/immutable-blockchain\/#Threats_to_blockchain_immutability\" title=\"Threats to blockchain immutability\">Threats to blockchain immutability<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/metaschool.so\/articles\/immutable-blockchain\/#Okay_but_how_can_immutable_data_be_altered\" title=\"Okay, but how can immutable data be altered?\">Okay, but how can immutable data be altered?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/metaschool.so\/articles\/immutable-blockchain\/#How_to_save_immutability_from_being_negatively_affected\" title=\"How to save immutability from being negatively affected?\">How to save immutability from being negatively affected?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/metaschool.so\/articles\/immutable-blockchain\/#Ethereum_founder_on_immutability\" title=\"Ethereum founder on immutability\">Ethereum founder on immutability<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"what-does-immutable-mean\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_does_immutable_mean_%F0%9F%93%96\"><\/span>What does immutable mean? \ud83d\udcd6<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Immutable can be referred to as the ability of something to not be changed and altered. It\u2019s derived from the Latin word <em>immutabillis<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The term is used in several areas, like functional and <a href=\"https:\/\/metaschool.so\/articles\/object-oriented-programming-deepdive\/\">object-oriented programming<\/a> where an object is considered immutable when its state can not be changed after it was created.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Similarly, it also exists in blockchain technology. In fact, it is one of the most important features of the technology where a blockchain ledger is unable to be manipulated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"how-immutability-in-crypto-works\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_immutability_in_crypto_works\"><\/span>How immutability in crypto works<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Immutability in the blockchain is achieved by cryptographic hashes which cannot be reverse-engineered. The most famous hash function is Secure Hash Algorithm 256 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.simplilearn.com\/tutorials\/cyber-security-tutorial\/sha-256-algorithm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">(SHA-256)<\/a>.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>SHA-256 is one of the first hashing algorithms that <a href=\"https:\/\/metaschool.so\/blockchains\/bitcoin?ref=Article&amp;utm_source=Blog_Organic\">Bitcoin<\/a>, Bitcoin SV, and Bitcoin Cash use.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>\ud83d\udcd6Important Read:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/metaschool.so\/articles\/hashing-in-blockchain\/\">Complete Guide to Hashing in Blockchain<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In public <a href=\"https:\/\/metaschool.so\/blockchains?ref=Article&amp;utm_source=Blog_Organic\">blockchains<\/a>, immutability doesn\u2019t just enhance the trust and audit system but also makes it much more effective and simpler by reducing the cost and time required in auditing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Immutability is also able to provide clarity to different stakeholders as it provides a shared source of truth that can be verified.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"benefits-of-blockchain-immutability\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Benefits_of_blockchain_immutability\"><\/span>Benefits of blockchain immutability<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>While immutability is an interesting and beneficial feature as a whole, here are some specific benefits that actually add value to the blockchain ecosystem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>Increased security: <\/strong>Security is perhaps the most fundamental benefit of immutability. Immutability ensures that the transactions\u2019 data are secure, and more immune from getting hacked.<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\" start=\"2\"><li><strong>Makes data tracking easy:<\/strong> Immutability in a blockchain is like a contract that states that whatever data is fed into the blockchain will not be altered or tampered with. This gives a sense of relief to users and developers alike. Moreover, this makes tracking data an easy process.<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\" start=\"3\"><li><strong>No more blame games:<\/strong> One of the greatest benefits of blockchain immutability is that it leaves no room for disputes. Even if a dispute is filed within a blockchain\u2019s management, the fact that all records are immutable makes all the disputes settle immediately. Think about the costs that immutability alone is reducing. Be it lawyers, litigation experts, courts, etc. it is all covered with immutability.<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"threats-to-blockchain-immutability\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Threats_to_blockchain_immutability\"><\/span>Threats to blockchain immutability<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>However, there are concerns around immutability as well in different blockchains.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Other than extra rigidity in decision-making, the main challenge is a certain type of attack which is:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>The 51% Attack<\/strong>: If a miner is able to get control of the majority of the blockchain network and alters the immutable data, it can suffer from a 51% attack.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"okay-but-how-can-immutable-data-be-altered\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Okay_but_how_can_immutable_data_be_altered\"><\/span>Okay, but how can immutable data be altered?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Okay, so complete immutability is more or less a myth in crypto. This is because, in certain circumstances, immutability can be broken.&nbsp; 51% is one such example. Thus, when a miner owns 51% of the blocks, he\/she can rewrite the transaction history. In fact, a 51% attack on a blockchain would cost around $752,000 for 1 hour.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"how-to-save-immutability-from-being-negatively-affected\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_to_save_immutability_from_being_negatively_affected\"><\/span>How to save immutability from being negatively affected?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The Ethereum <a href=\"https:\/\/metaschool.so\/articles\/proof-of-stake-pos-meaning\/\">Proof-of-Stake<\/a> consensus mechanism is considered to be the solution to this attack because it involves <a href=\"https:\/\/metaschool.so\/articles\/validator-blockchain\/\">validators<\/a> and not miners.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Moreover, in the <a href=\"https:\/\/metaschool.so\/articles\/proof-of-work-meaning\/\">Proof-of-Work<\/a> consensus mechanism, each <a href=\"https:\/\/metaschool.so\/articles\/block-meaning-blockchain\/\">block<\/a> is supposed to be solved within 10 minutes. If miners are taking less time, the difficulty level shall grow. Thus, the difficulty level of verifying a block can also help remove the threat of a potential 51% attack.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"ethereum-founder-on-immutability\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Ethereum_founder_on_immutability\"><\/span>Ethereum founder on immutability<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The founder of the <a href=\"https:\/\/metaschool.so\/blockchains\/ethereum?ref=Articles&amp;utm_source=Blog_Organic\">Ethereum Blockchain<\/a>, when discussing that immutability can not depend on anyone, said:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p><br><br>If a blockchain\u2019s immutability depends on me (or core devs in general) just deciding out of the kindness of our hearts to not do things that are eminently practical, then that\u2019s not a very immutable blockchain<\/p><p><\/p><cite><a href=\"https:\/\/metaschool.so\/articles\/vitalik-buterin-ethereum-profile\/\">Vitalik Buterin<\/a><\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>A blockchain ledger and its function is the best practical example around to understand the term.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5422,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"neve_meta_sidebar":"","neve_meta_container":"","neve_meta_enable_content_width":"","neve_meta_content_width":0,"neve_meta_title_alignment":"","neve_meta_author_avatar":"","neve_post_elements_order":"","neve_meta_disable_header":"","neve_meta_disable_footer":"","neve_meta_disable_title":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[73],"tags":[51,31,74,68],"class_list":["post-2571","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-web3-crypto-glossary","tag-blockchain","tag-ethereum-blockchain","tag-web3-glossary","tag-web3-words"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/metaschool.so\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2571","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/metaschool.so\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/metaschool.so\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/metaschool.so\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/metaschool.so\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2571"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/metaschool.so\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2571\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7010,"href":"https:\/\/metaschool.so\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2571\/revisions\/7010"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/metaschool.so\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5422"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/metaschool.so\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2571"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/metaschool.so\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2571"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/metaschool.so\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2571"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}