Follow Us

Zk-SNARK and Its Role in Protecting the Privacy of Blockchains

Share on facebook
Share on twitter
Share on linkedin

Share

Zk-SNARK and Its Role in Protecting the Privacy of Blockchains
Share on facebook
Share on twitter
Share on linkedin

Zk-SNARK, shortened for “zero-knowledge succinct non-interactive argument of knowledge,” is a zero-knowledge cryptography proof protocol. The practical implementation of zk-SNARK has come into effect owing to the traceable and public nature of the blockchain transactions. This technique bestows the user with the advantage of possessing certain information without compromising it with another party. Zcash, a cryptocurrency application, recently employed zk-SNARK technology to combat the privacy issues with Bitcoin-type blockchains. 

Understanding zk-SNARK

Privacy has always played a prominent role in the transaction of cryptocurrencies (like Bitcoins). However, over the years, the lack of anonymity in the same has been vouched for by data scientists, hackers, and law enforcement agencies. 

The problem can be avoided by the use of a special cryptocurrency, called privacy coins, that is backed up by the zk-SNARK technology. One such example is Zcash (CRYPTO: ZEC), a cryptocurrency that performs encrypted transactions using zk-SNARK as its core technology. 

Zk-SNARKs are specifically zero-knowledge proofs, the concept of which dates back to the late 1980s. These zero-knowledge proofs refer to a situation where two users engaging in an encrypted transaction can verify to each other that they are in possession of important information (e.g., a secret key) without revealing the contents of the same. 

These proofs are succinct, meaning the verification can be done within a timeframe of milliseconds, while the size of the proof is a few hundred bytes at most. Unlike the early zero-knowledge proofs that demanded back-and-forth interactions between the prover and verifier, zk-SNARK’s non-interactive nature requires the prover to only send a single message to the verifier. 

In generic terms, validation of a cryptocurrency transaction is executed by the network by ensuring the fulfillment of certain conditions. The reason behind the popularity of zk-SNARK is that these constructed proofs allow the sender to prove these conditions without revealing any addresses or the amount involved in the transaction. 

To achieve this, some of the blockchain network’s consensus rules are encoded in zk-SNARK. In addition, during transactions, zk-SNARK turns what needs to be proved to the verifier into some algebraic equations that can be solved without disclosing any sensitive information. 

Cons and Pros of zk-SNARK

The most outstanding benefit of zk-SNARK technology is the facilitation of shielded transactions over blockchain-based networks while preserving information regarding the user’s identity as well as transactions. 

Zk-SNARK is increasingly becoming useful in the blockchain networks of various enterprise settings (e.g., food, healthcare, and pharmaceuticals) for preventing the leakage of sensitive company information to competitors. 

Another major use case of zk-SNARK is maintaining self-sovereign identity, meaning the application of zero-knowledge proof to prove claims about one’s identity without giving out any sensitive information to another party. 

Along with its benefits, there are some challenging aspects of zk-SNARK that impede its widespread application. For instance, to maintain the succinctness and efficiency aspects of zk-SNARK, provers are required to spend a lot of money on high-computing computers that can generate the proofs and also store their transcripts. 

Privacy coins employing the zk-SNARK technique should take steps to ensure that the private key of the set protocol does not fall into the hands of wrong personnel who can generate fake proofs and counterfeit funds. 

Hence, although zk-SNARK is a fascinating cryptography concept that has true potential for providing privacy to its users, developers need to work on its various downsides to make it more useful in terms of security, scalability, and efficiency.  

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Download our App for getting faster updates at your fingertips.

en_badge_web_generic.b07819ff-300x116-1

We Recommend

Top Rated Cryptocurrency Exchange

-
00:00
00:00
Update Required Flash plugin
-
00:00
00:00