{"id":9817,"date":"2023-08-27T21:45:05","date_gmt":"2023-08-27T21:45:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/?p=9817"},"modified":"2022-05-16T20:44:51","modified_gmt":"2022-05-16T20:44:51","slug":"what-is-hash-chain-the-bitcoin-anti-theft-chain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/en\/what-is-hash-chain-the-bitcoin-anti-theft-chain","title":{"rendered":"What is Hash Chain? The Bitcoin anti theft chain"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_82_2 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-transparent ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Alternar tabla de contenidos\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #ffffff;color:#ffffff\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #ffffff;color:#ffffff\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 eztoc-toggle-hide-by-default' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/en\/what-is-hash-chain-the-bitcoin-anti-theft-chain\/#what_is_a_hash_chain\" >What is a Hash Chain?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/en\/what-is-hash-chain-the-bitcoin-anti-theft-chain\/#how_does_it_work\" >How does it work?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/en\/what-is-hash-chain-the-bitcoin-anti-theft-chain\/#what_are_its_uses\" >What are its uses?<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/en\/what-is-hash-chain-the-bitcoin-anti-theft-chain\/#authentication_in_blockchain\" >Authentication in blockchain<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/en\/what-is-hash-chain-the-bitcoin-anti-theft-chain\/#one_time_passwords\" >One time passwords<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/en\/what-is-hash-chain-the-bitcoin-anti-theft-chain\/#detection_in_virus_scanners\" >Detection in virus scanners<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<span class=\"span-reading-time rt-reading-time\" style=\"display: block;\"><span class=\"rt-label rt-prefix\">Tiempo de lectura:<\/span> <span class=\"rt-time\"> 3<\/span> <span class=\"rt-label rt-postfix\">minutos<\/span><\/span><p>Remember those sci-fi movies or series, like Psycho Pass,\u00a0<strong>where they have those cool houses with state-of-the-art technology and holograms all over the place?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>A complete dream, isn\u2019t it? But now imagine that a thief wants to break into our house to take some of our belongings. Seeing that everything is completely technological and some things are holographic (but they allow you to keep things inside), he ventures to try.<\/p>\n<p><strong>But, oh, surprise!\u00a0<\/strong>As soon as he tries to take an object, everything automatically changes order. The cute little vase in the living room is now in the master bedroom and every time she tries to take something, the same thing happens.<\/p>\n<p><strong>It\u2019s like when our parents constantly moved the chocolate stash as soon as they saw that there was one less chocolate in the bag, but automatically.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>In a similar way, we can visualize and understand secure hashes\u00a0<\/strong>or, as I call it, Bitcoin\u2019s anti-theft method.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Let\u2019s review what makes it so fundamental to the Bitcoin Blockchain and many cryptos and what is the reason it is one of the most secure algorithms\u00a0<\/strong>within the crypto ecosystem.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"what_is_a_hash_chain\"><\/span>What is a Hash Chain?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>A Hash Chain, also called a Hash Chain,<strong>\u00a0is a sequence of values that are produced by the consecutive application of cryptographic hash functions on a specific block or blockchain.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Recall that\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/en\/what-is-a-hash\/\">the hash function<\/a>\u00a0<strong>is a cryptographic function that encodes an amount of input data from a blockchain<\/strong>\u00a0(which is equivalent to a correct or valid hash).<\/p>\n<p>The purpose of this is to generate a unique string of characters that represents, numerically, all the data found in that block.\u00a0<strong>That is, instead of \u201cAlice sent 5 btc to Louis\u201d it would be \u201cDFCD3453\u201d.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Certainly, it is unidirectional, because it cannot be reversed after the hash of the block has been confirmed.<\/strong>\u00a0In other words, it is virtually impossible to access the original data. If the information is modified, the code that was generated is changed.<\/p>\n<p>Basically, a hash chain\u00a0<strong>replicates this process a large number of times until a complete block chain is completed<\/strong>. Consequently, it is like a\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/en\/what-is-a-merkle-tree\/\">Merkel tree or a Hash tree<\/a>\u00a0but with a single branch or line.<\/p>\n<div id=\"image_1464357968\" class=\"img has-hover x md-x lg-x y md-y lg-y\">\n<div class=\"img-inner dark\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"attachment-large size-large lazyloaded\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Que-es-Hash-Chain.jpg\" sizes=\"(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Que-es-Hash-Chain.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Que-es-Hash-Chain-300x205.jpg 300w\" alt=\"\u00bfQu\u00e9 es Hash Chain? La cadena anti robo de Bitcoin\" width=\"768\" height=\"526\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Que-es-Hash-Chain.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Que-es-Hash-Chain-300x205.jpg 300w\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Que-es-Hash-Chain.jpg\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"how_does_it_work\"><\/span>How does it work?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>To understand how this goes,\u00a0<strong>let\u2019s imagine that we are making use of the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/en\/what-is-blockchain-and-how-does-it-work\/\">blockchain<\/a>\u00a0technology of some project<\/strong>. It could be\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/en\/who-is-satoshi-nakamoto\/\">Satoshi Minamoto\u2019s<\/a>\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/en\/what-is-bitcoin\/\">Bitcoin<\/a>,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/quien-es-vitalik-buterin\/\">Vitalik Buterin\u2019s<\/a>\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/en\/what-is-ethereum-eth-and-how-does-it-work\/\">Ethereum<\/a>\u00a0or whichever one strikes your fancy.<\/p>\n<p><strong>The first thing you must do is to provide some input data<\/strong>\u00a0in the first interaction or session you open to make the transaction.<\/p>\n<p>This first information\u00a0<strong>is encoded by a hash function such as the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/en\/what-is-sha-256-algorithm-and-how-does-it-work\/\">SHA-256<\/a>\u00a0hashing algorithm, which will result in a code with a fixed length that helps authenticate<\/strong>\u00a0the next time you enter your data in a second session.<\/p>\n<p>In this way, that output (the resulting code)\u00a0<strong>is like a fingerprint that identifies the input and the files.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Over a set of sessions,<strong>\u00a0these individual hash entries create a hash chain that further validates a user\u2019s input.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>After that, if everything is valid, the transaction will be carried out and registered.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"what_are_its_uses\"><\/span>What are its uses?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"authentication_in_blockchain\"><\/span><b>Authentication in blockchain<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>As described in the previous section,\u00a0<strong>all the processes it runs have the function of authenticating the entries with previous hash keys.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>These types of hash chain processes are widely used by Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"one_time_passwords\"><\/span><b>One time passwords<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>This \u201cmethod\u201d or sequence<strong>\u00a0is typically used to produce single-use keys from a single key and the keys are used in reverse order of generation.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>In other words, with one key, many keys are created and the first one is the last one to be used and vice versa. Each key can be used only once, which reinforces security.<\/p>\n<p><strong>This use became popular thanks to the suggestions of Leslie Lamport,<\/strong>\u00a0a computer scientist\u00a0<strong>known for his contributions to various theories and algorithms such as\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/en\/what-is-byzantine-fault-tolerance-a-quick-guide\/\">Byzantine fault tolerance<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0and for being the creator of the LaTeX word processor.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"detection_in_virus_scanners\"><\/span><b>Detection in virus scanners<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><strong>Hash functions are like fingerprints,\u00a0<\/strong>which is why they are often used in it\u00a0<strong>to detect possible modifications to a file.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>It is also useful for identifying damaged files,\u00a0<strong>as this type of data produces a different output, which makes it easier for specific software to find.<\/strong><\/p>\n<div id=\"image_2111135083\" class=\"img has-hover x md-x lg-x y md-y lg-y\">\n<div class=\"img-inner dark\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"attachment-large size-large lazyloaded\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Que-es-Hash-Chain1.jpg\" sizes=\"(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Que-es-Hash-Chain1.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Que-es-Hash-Chain1-300x205.jpg 300w\" alt=\"\u00bfQu\u00e9 es Hash Chain? La cadena anti robo de Bitcoin\" width=\"768\" height=\"526\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Que-es-Hash-Chain1.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Que-es-Hash-Chain1-300x205.jpg 300w\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Que-es-Hash-Chain1.jpg\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>So much for our journey.<\/p>\n<p>If you are interested\u00a0<strong>in reading more articles associated with the news of the crypto universe and its basic concepts, you can click on the topics below or go to\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/en\/\">our blog<\/a>.<\/strong>\u00a0We know they will be totally useful for you.<\/p>\n<p>For the time being, see you in a future article!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p><span class=\"span-reading-time rt-reading-time\" style=\"display: block;\"><span class=\"rt-label rt-prefix\">Tiempo de lectura:<\/span> <span class=\"rt-time\"> 3<\/span> <span class=\"rt-label rt-postfix\">minutos<\/span><\/span>Remember those sci-fi movies or series, like Psycho Pass,\u00a0where they have those cool houses with state-of-the-art technology and holograms all over the place?\u00a0 A complete dream, isn\u2019t it? But now imagine that a thief wants to break into our house to take some of our belongings. Seeing that everything is completely technological and some things [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":9821,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[185],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9817","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blockchain-en"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9817","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9817"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9817\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9821"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9817"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9817"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bitnovo.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9817"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}