How Blockchain Is Being Applied to Cloud Storage
While cloud storage offers clear benefits, it suffers, like on-site data storage, from the constant threat of cyber attacks. As headlines often demonstrate, even high-profile companies with robust security budgets are often the victims of hackers. How can enterprises access cloud storage and minimize the threat of a cyber attack?
The answer is blockchain technology. While blockchain is often associated with digital currency, it is an approach to data that can be applied to a variety of other applications. A decentralized cloud that cannot be altered in any way without a record of it makes an attractive solution for secure cloud storage.
Blockchain offers increased security. Every movement in the data is tracked by blockchain, so there is no way for anything to be manipulated or altered without the user’s permission. In addition, blockchain is not controlled by a single entity. Blockchain also spreads data around a global network, so there’s no risk of a colocation center going down, for instance, and causing the company to disrupt business practices. Overall, blockchain is a more secure way to transfer data, with robust cryptography and a high level of transparency.
What about transparency? Companies are seeking out better transparency from their cloud storage providers. Centralized software and services are meant to offer better transparency, but visibility is limited because it is a single provider, which is the exact opposite of a decentralized cloud. As blockchain enters the market, providers will have to find new ways to increase visibility or risk losing market share.
Token economics reduces cost. One of the benefits of blockchain technology is the ability to integrate token economics. Decentralized cloud providers can offer tokens as a way to pay for storage space, allowing customers to save money.
In practical terms, customers purchase tokens in exchange for storage space. When they no longer need that storage space, they simply sell their tokens to another enterprise that needs a cloud storage solution, resulting in essentially a zero-cost model for data. This payment model will also result in a more competitive market, eventually resulting in fewer providers.
When considering all the benefits that blockchain technology could offer cloud storage solutions, it’s also good to note that there’s a significant drawback to blockchain: it’s slow. There is likely to be a technological solution that addresses the speed of blockchain, making it a reliable cloud storage solution for enterprises.
Learn more about cloud storage options and how to optimize your data solutions. Contact us at Net Tel One Communications.