Can Blockchain Technology be Hacked - A Complete Guide

Can Blockchain Technology be Hacked? 


The hacker is trying hard to read and reverse hidden transactions in the blockchain arrangement. However, the nature of Blockchain Technology makes this type of hack proof. Blockchains are hypothetically manipulative because "They use a cryptographic fingerprint for each block in the blockchain and uses  “Different Consensus Algorithm like POW, POA, POS, RIPPLE, etc for their Security transmission”  i.e each computer in the network agrees to share the transactional history associated with one another.

A study led in 2017 by The World Economic Forum shockingly gave further direction that we can expect up to 10% of worldwide GDP on the blockchain by 2025. For this to happen blockchain innovation should supplant the immense area of legacy Systems currently used in finance, government, business and public records in less than a decade. Supporting the size of the upgrade that would incorporate the Harvard Business Review recommends that "blockchain can possibly make new establishments for our financial and social frameworks."


The Two basic properties of Blockchain Technology that are related with the innovation are: Firstly,  the proficiency of a decentralized framework. The fact that blockchain applications overcome the need for intermediaries to provide confidence means that it can make many processes cheaper and more efficient. The Secondly, blockchain is naturally an exceptionally secure innovation. This decentralized nature and cryptographic calculation makes it insusceptible to assault. Indeed, hacking blockchain is close to unimaginable. In reality as we know it where digital security has become a significant issue for individual, corporate and national security, blockchain is a conceivably progressive innovation. Hence the question, Blockchain Technology be Hacked still remains unanswered.


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Is Blockchain Really Secure?

The capacity of blockchain to secure resources and transactions depends primarily on the decentralized  circulation of information and controls that form the core of the innovation behind the technology. Since any information is replicated across a large number of nodes (or computers), destroying or modifying information simultaneously on one or several nodes will not affect the integrity of the blockchain. This decentralization makes the storage of information on the blockchain more secure than centralized storage systems. Centralized storage of data is highly insecure as there is only one point of failure, which is the total collapse of system security when compromised.

All stored data is shared multiple times between all nodes of the network. As mentioned above, the Blockchain self-updates every ten minutes. In a Blockchain, information is treated as a shared file.
Shared information is easily verified and accessible to anyone in the network. It also ensures that data cannot be stolen and synchronized with other files. Most importantly, because there is no central point, data cannot be corrupted or attacked.

The ledger can be shared with a private group of users connected via the local area network or with thousands of people on the Internet. A message is relayed on the creation of every new block, to ensure that all users have a latest version. This feature has applications well beyond digital currencies, as it eliminates the need for a trusted central party to record information.

Unlike other websites, which can be easily attacked despite security passwords, in a Blockchain, data is shared between multiple nodes with no central point, so it cannot be stolen. Instead of a physical or online account that is to be maintained by a third party, each unit of data is stored on the Blockchain itself. Users can access data securely using their private / public key pairs. Once a transaction is relayed across the Internet and included in a block, it is considered permanent.

Every information in the Bockchain is cryptographically hashed. In other words, information on the network hides the true nature of the data. For this process, any input data is obtained through a mathematical algorithm that produces a different type of value, but the length is always fixed.

The data is completely secure  just because of  encryption with private and public keys. The public key is randomly shared as a long string and shared publicly. On the other hand, the private key is used as a password to access users' data. Therefore it is governed with high security consensus algorithms and hash key which maintain its overall environment.

Additionally, this technology Irreversibility, i.e that if something is entered into the system of Blockchain it cannot be tampered with. As it is controlled by the cryptographic hash function in the entire network of the system. The hash function is a mathematical function that creates a unique variable number of characters each time and converts it into strings with fixed characters. A small change in the string also creates a new hash value of that particular node in the system.



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Therefore, if this system is so secured then what’s make them Hackable? Can Blockchain Technology be Hacked? Let’s have a view on different Case Studies, that can prove this theoretical thesis, as Hackable .

Case Study:

First Blockchain hack online in June 2011.
Loss: $50,000 (2609 BTC)

This is one of the well-known blockchain hacked scenario ever. Clearly,, the cyber-criminal got tightly to the reviewer's certifications and afterward abused those to get into the framework. More so, the attacker then changed the value of 1 BTC to 1 cent. Besides, the attacker also collected 2609 from different customers that sold the BTC at this exceptionally low cost. From that point onward, he/she even bought back 650 BTCs from another record too.


Second Blockchain hacked in March 2014.
Loss: $350 million (750,000 BTC)

The second attack was even worse. Hence, this time, the attacker found out about a bug in the codes and saw that exchanges are increasingly adaptable. All the more in this way, anybody could alter the detail of the exchange and make it seem as though that it never at any point occurred. So, Eventually it become a kind of like double-spending.

Hence, the attacker manipulates the sender’s signature before it get  permanently stored in the distributed ledger. The Hacker also changed the transaction ID. The new ID and changed transaction can overwrite the original transaction details and make it seem as though that the receiver didn’t get any funds.


Hence, there are numerous of  such case that has happened. So, from the above we can simply conclude:

1. Is Blockchain really secure? Or can be hacked.

2. Maybe these cases happened in past long ago and that time blockchain technology was not that secure as it was in its initial stages but now as the technology grew every day, it has made it secure.

3. Still some possible scenario that can leads to hack -able situation in this emerging technology.




Can-Blockchain-Technology-be-Hacked-A-Complete-Guide-Blockchain-Briefings
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Blockchain Hacking: Can Blockchain Technology be Hacked?


Possible Scenarios for Hacking--

Since blockchain should be amazingly secure and unalterable, numerous people have named this innovational technology  as "unhackable". However, recent  occurrences have shockingly indicated that programmers can get to blockchains in specific circumstances. This incorporates the following situations:


1. 51% Attack

A blockchain network is essentially a arrangements of computers where the decision of the majority is taken as a whole. During the verification in the process, individuals node is referred as “miners” will review the transactions to ensure they are authenticate and genuine. When one or more hackers gain control over half of the mining process, there can be extremely negative consequences A 51% attack aims to exploit this feature of blockchain networks and manipulate transactions. 

In a 51% attack, a single entity of node can gain the overall control of the majority of nodes on a blockchain network and use them to alter transactional process  in their favor. The attack may just happen but if 51% of the nodes in the network lie, then the lie has to be accepted as true. This type of attack vector is usually carried out on smaller node network, , where it's simpler to gather most of mining or preparing power. Such attacks would be difficult to carry out on larger networks, such as Bitcoin and Ethereum, since gaining the majority on these systems would be excessively hard and costly for any single gathering.


 2. Sybil Attack

The strength of blockchain networks lies in the presence of a vast number of different users and nodes to validate transactions. A Sybil attack is when a large number of nodes on a blockchain network are controlled by a single entity or individual groups, that pose as multiple different users using fake identities.

Sybil assaults, in spite of the fact that don't actually hack into the blockchain engineering or debilitate the framework, they basically empower assailants to misuse the way blockchain capacities. With enough nodes under their influence, they can essentially centralize the blockchain network, and partially will make a decentralized system  to look as a centralized one

3. Creation Errors / Mistake

Sometimes, there might be security glitches or blunders during making of blockchain. This might be progressively regular with bigger, increasingly mind boggling blockchains. At the point when this happens, programmers searching for a path in can distinguish the vulnerabilities and endeavor an assault. This has unfolded with smart contracts, which utilize a blockchain system to work. Normal elements of smart contracts incorporate helping with the budgetary part of agreement dealings and mechanizing undertakings.

Lawful experts may experience smart agreements in their training, in the case of utilizing them inside or through introduction from cases and customer issues. In the event that a security defect exists on the blockchain organize where a smart contract works, hackers might have the option to take cash from clients without being identified in light of the fact that the fraudulent activity is not reflected.


4. Denial of Service Attack

A blockchain Denial service attact  works along same fashion. The hackers  direct enormous volumes of "Fake" or invalid transaction to blockchain nodes and make them unequipped for handling the transaction that are really required by the blockchain arrange. This slows down the blockchain and it temporarily stops  from processing client further requests. The result of a Denail Service Attack is an extremely inefficient blockchain network that cannot keep up with the demand for service.


5.  Insufficient Security

Many blockchain hacks have occurred on trades, which is the place clients can exchange cryptocurrecy. In the event that the security works on encompassing the trades are weak, hackers will have simpler access to information of data.

6.Eclipse Attack

Eclipse attacks target single individual nodes to isolate them from blockchain networks and redirect their processing power for the hacker’s purposes. This can also be used to redirect funds to the attackers desired wallets without the victim realizing about any kind of attack on their system. Since the victim’s computer is isolated from the main blockchain network ,  they are unable to observe the fact that they are not participating in their desired blockchain server. Therefore, Eclipse attacks can also be used to hack and  isolate a group of interconnected nodes in the network.



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