TrustFix - Blockchain transaction deletion method
Ref.-No. 6054
Keywords: Blockchain, erase, data security
Blockchain is considered one of the new technologies allowing permanent, transparent data storage. When used to store transactions, it allows information correction only by means of adding further transactions. Previous information cannot be removed, since if it were, the linkage and thus the security and integrity of the blockchain would be endangered.
To ensure data protection, the GDPR requires that personal data be deletable. Current deletion methods require a great deal of resources and call previous time stamps into question. TrustFix is a method by which an authorized person can delete data in a blockchain. If a blockchain participant encounters a blockchain containing a deleted transaction, the blockchain cannot be automatically be validated. The deletion and the following blocks are validated only provisionally. Only when the participant encounters a block that contains a valid deletion order are the Merkle tree calculations for the previous blocks categorized as trustworthy.
Competitive Advantages
- Allows data to be deleted from a blockchain
- High security
- Blockchain can be GDPR-compliant
Commercial Opportunities
TrustFix is a deletion method that allows subsequent targeted deletion of specific pieces of blockchain information for legal compliance. TrustFix thus allows blockchain use in areas in which the necessity of data deletion is foreseeable (at the customer’s request or due to data retention periods, for instance).
Current Status
This is a joint invention by the Westfälische Hochschule and TrustCert GmbH. A prototype has been created, and initial test series have verified method functionality. An application to the European Patent Office is pending. We are offering interested companies the opportunity to license and refine the technology in collaboration with the inventors and the Westfälische Hochschule.
Technology Readiness Level
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Technology validated in lab
Relevant Puclications
Some publications are planned.
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An invention from the Westfälische Hochschule.
