Protecting Sensitive Data In A Distributed Ledger System Using A Blockchain Channel Hierarchy
A blockchain hierarchy comprises an arrangement of blockchain channels organized such that a blockchain channel at a lower level feeds data to another blockchain channel, e.g., a relatively higher level. At least one blockchain channel comprises a private autonomous subset of peers in the set of peers that comprise the blockchain network. Within that particular subset, one of the peers is elected as a leader entity, which has the capability of also joining another private or public blockchain channel, e.g., one at a higher level in the hierarchy. The leader entity includes a capability to enforce a data protection policy within the blockchain channel that it leads. To this end, the leader filters or declassifies data based on some task-specific (or blockchain channel-specific) data protection policy, and it then makes that data available to one or more other blockchain channels in the hierarchy (directly or indirectly).
Much More than Average Length Specification
- Claim CLM-00001. 1. A method of protecting data in a peer-to-peer distributed network having a set of computing entities, comprising:
associating at least respective first and second subsets of the computing entities into respective first and second blockchain channels, wherein a channel is a private subnet of communication between or among two or more specific peers in the respective subset for conducting one or more private transactions; upon a determination that data associated with the first blockchain channel should be shared with the second blockchain channel, processing the data within the first blockchain channel according to a data protection policy to generate processed data; and sharing the processed data to the second blockchain channel.
- Claim CLM-00008. 8. An apparatus, comprising:
a processor; and computer memory holding computer program instructions executed by the processor and configured to protect data in a peer-to-peer distributed network having a set of computing entities, the computer program instructions comprising program code configured to:
associate at least respective first and second subsets of the computing entities into respective first and second blockchain channels, wherein a channel is a private subnet of communication between or among two or more specific peers in the respective subset for conducting one or more private transactions;
upon a determination that data associated with the first blockchain channel should be shared with the second blockchain channel, process the data within the first blockchain channel according to a data protection policy to generate processed data; and
share the processed data to the second blockchain channel.
- Claim CLM-00015. 15. A computer program product in a non-transitory computer readable medium for use in a data processing system, the computer program product holding computer program instructions which, when executed by the data processing system, are configured to protect data in a peer-to-peer distributed network having a set of computing entities, the data processing system being a computing entity of the set of computing entities, the computer program instructions comprising program code configured to:
associate at least respective first and second subsets of the computing entities into respective first and second blockchain channels, wherein a channel is a private subnet of communication between or among two or more specific peers in the respective subset for conducting one or more private transactions; upon a determination that data associated with the first blockchain channel should be shared with the second blockchain channel, process the data within the first blockchain channel according to a data protection policy to generate processed data; and share the processed data to the second blockchain channel.
