=Paper=
{{Paper
|id=Vol-3092/p13
|storemode=property
|title=Blockchain, State-of-the-Art and Future Trends
World
|pdfUrl=https://ceur-ws.org/Vol-3092/p13.pdf
|volume=Vol-3092
|authors=Francesca Fallucchi,Marco Gerardi
|dblpUrl=https://dblp.org/rec/conf/system/FallucchiG21
}}
==Blockchain, State-of-the-Art and Future Trends
World==
https://ceur-ws.org/Vol-3092/p13.pdf
Blockchain, State-of-the-Art and Future Trends
Francesca Fallucchi1 , Marco Gerardi2
1
Guglielmo Marconi University, Via Plinio 44, 00193 Rome, Italy
2
The Italian Institute for Environmental Protection and Research, ISPRA, Via Vitaliano Brancati 48, 00144 Rome, Italy
Abstract
The rapid technology evolution and the future challenges demand us to adopt increasingly cutting-edge and up-to-date
technological tools. In this perspective, Blockchain technology is revolutionizing countless areas of our daily lives. In this
paper, we present a non exhaustive list on the state of the art about Blockchain technology in multiple application fields,
both from an industry and business perspective and from a consumer one. We will also present a dedicated focus on the
frictions between distributed ledgers and data protection regulations crossing all these areas.
Keywords
Blockchain, Smart Contract, Distributed Ledger, Data Protection, GDPR.
1. Introduction there is therefore no need for a central system to act as
a guarantor. The blockchain is a particular distributed
If we had to give a definition of blockchain we could ledger made up of an unbroken chain of blocks, each
quote the World Bank which uses the following words: linked to the previous one. The blocks are composed of a
Blockchain, a particular type of DLT (Distributed Ledger number of transactions that are encrypted and validated
Technology), uses cryptographic and algorithmic meth- by all nodes.
ods to create and verify a continuously growing, append- The pandemic we are currently experiencing, although
only data structure that takes the form of a chain of it still weighs heavily on our society, has undoubtedly
so-called ‘transaction blocks’ – the blockchain – which accelerated the development of more digital and inte-
serves the function of a ledger [1, 2]. Unlike current cor- grated processes. Therefore, many companies are accel-
porate and government databases where data is stored erating their efforts to provide services that are more and
in one place (centralized), the blockchain is composed of more adapted to a population of smart business users but
a digital network of globally dispersed computers, called more generally, to provide reliable and efficient services
nodes that record data and transaction history. The nodes through online and new technologies.
are also responsible for validating and storing all transac- In recent years we have seen great innovation and
tions since the database was created. Since the system is developments in technologies related to Artificial In-
decentralized, most nodes must reach a common agree- telligence [5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16], Big
ment. If a node wants to make an update of its own, the Data [17, 18, 19, 20, 21], People and Objects Geolocation
other nodes must vote on this decision to ensure that the [22, 23], as well as Cloud Computing [24, 25, 26], Quan-
update is legitimate and secure. Once this is done, the tum Computing [27], Super Computing [28], Cellular and
system updates the records to the most recent and agreed Satellite Networks [29, 30, 31], and so on.
updates on all nodes simultaneously. This process of vot- The blockchain [32] technology sector has also accel-
ing on a node is known as "consensus" [3, 4]. Compared erated, with 59% more projects and 80% fewer announce-
to a distributed database where nodes are part of a single ments. This is in contrast to previous years and shows
organization, so we can say that they trust each other, how the focus is shifting towards a more mature use
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) is based on a digi- of blockchain and a significant reduction in initial hype
tal data structure where nodes cannot trust each other, [33]. Indeed, the data shows that around 47% of projects
so data is only stored within nodes following agreement are based on existing platforms. The most active coun-
and specific rules (consensus). According to these rules, tries are the United States, China and Japan, followed
by Australia and South Korea. Initially, the blockchain
SYSTEM 2021 @ Scholar’s Yearly Symposium of Technology, was mainly used in finance, today only 59% of projects
Engineering and Mathematics. July 27–29, 2021, Catania, IT
are linked to it, the remaining percentage is related to
" f.fallucchi@unimarconi.it (F. Fallucchi);
marco.gerardi@isprambiente.it (M. Gerardi) multiple other areas ranging from agriculture to health-
~ http://www.gei.de/en/mitarbeiter/francesca-fallucchi-phd.html care, via art, the pharmaceutical industry, government
(F. Fallucchi) institutions, the education sector, logistics and utilities,
0000-0002-3288-044X (F. Fallucchi); 0000-0002-1784-7334 to name a few.
(M. Gerardi) This article, after presenting the advantages of blockchain
© 2021 Copyright for this paper by its authors. Use permitted under Creative
CEUR
Workshop
Proceedings
http://ceur-ws.org
ISSN 1613-0073
Commons License Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0).
CEUR Workshop Proceedings (CEUR-WS.org) technology and the use of smart contracts, illustrates an
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Francesca Fallucchi et al. CEUR Workshop Proceedings 80–88
overview, far from being exhaustive, of the main applica- local copy of the ledger and contributes to the mainte-
tion areas of blockchain. Moreover, an in-depth analysis nance of the distributed network by providing computing
will focus on issues related to the regulation on personal power and storage. All records in the ledger are search-
data protection, a problem that involves transversally all able by nodes in the network and all information con-
areas where it is possible to apply blockchain technology. tained therein is verified and auditable. In summary, a
The paper is structured as follows: in section II, we talk distributed ledger can be viewed as a database whose
about related works, what is blockchain, how it works data is replicated, shared, synchronized, and geographi-
and what are the advantages compared to the use of dis- cally distributed across multiple nodes in a network that
tributed databases; in section III, we outline the features communicate and collaborate via specific consensus and
of blockchain, what smart contracts are and describe the workload-sharing protocols.
main application areas; section IV analyzes the difficult Although the technology used for distributed ledgers
relationship between blockchain and the legislation on and the blockchain share the same conceptual origin and
personal data protection. Finally, in section V we sum- have the same purposes, they are not exactly the same
marize our work, draw conclusions, and outline possible thing. The blockchain is as a particular distributed ledger
future studies. with a distinct set of features and operational processes
that give it significant value. Unlike distributed ledger,
blockchain bundles transactions into blocks protecting
2. Related work them against tampering with powerful cryptographic
systems, moreover each block is sequentially linked to
In this section, we will describe what a blockchain is,
all other blocks in the chain. These blocks, once inserted
how it works and what its most important uses are. We
into the chain, are immutable and can be used to recon-
also illustrate why the blockchain, despite being a dis-
struct the history of all the data within the blockchain. In
tributed database, overcomes its limitations and expands
addition, there is a consensus system (e.g. Proof of Work
its potential and use.
- POW or Proof of Stake - POS) to determine how new
Before talking about blockchain, it is essential to intro-
blocks should be added to the blockchain.
duce distributed systems [34] as the core of any blockchain
The most famous use of the blockchain is the tech-
is composed of a distributed and decentralized system.
nology behind bitcoins [32]. In this case, the blockchain
A distributed system is made up of two or more nodes
records currency transactions, which is the transfer of
(computers connected to each other via telematics) that
currency from one wallet to another. This is just one
collaborate simultaneously for a common goal, giving the
of the potential applications of the technology, in fact,
perception to the end user that they are one system. An
blockchains are useful in many other fields both indus-
example is represented by the well-known e-commerce
trial and tertiary and for many other types of record-
platform Amazon that is based on a large distributed sys-
ings that go far beyond simple financial transactions.
tem but users see it as a single, coherent platform. In a
They can be used for all information that needs to be
distributed system, all nodes are able to exchange infor-
recorded in an immutable way such as health data in
mation directly, without the necessity of a centralized
medical records, contracts, property transfers, purchase
element acting as a director. The main objective of a dis-
of goods and services and much more.
tributed system is to ensure fault tolerance and efficiently
manage the communication and exchange of data and
information between nodes. In fact, even if some nodes 3. Blockchain: the concrete
of the network should be unreachable, the system as a
whole will be able to provide the service for which it was benefits and most promising
designed, without interruption and without providing applications
disservice. When a database uses distributed technology
to manage information of interest to stakeholders, it is In this chapter, we are going to outline the main features
referred to as a distributed database or distributed ledger of blockchain technology, pointing out its positive sides
(also called distributed ledger technology or DLT). and possible fields of application. In fact, in the last few
A distributed ledger is a ledger where data is entered, years, analysts have hypothesized that a large part of the
updated and controlled in a distributed manner among industries could benefit more or less strikingly from the
users, without the need for a central governing body. In use of distributed ledger in general and blockchain in
this new scenario, data is stored in the ledger only when a particular.
consensus has been reached between the parties involved. There are several cases of commercial use of blockchain,
Subsequently, this data is time stamped and a unique en- with transactions that are automatically verified and or-
crypted signature is assigned to each transaction. Each ganized by a decentralized platform that does not require
party involved in maintaining the ledger has its own the supervision of a central entity or subject, while en-
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Francesca Fallucchi et al. CEUR Workshop Proceedings 80–88
suring resistance to tampering and fraud. modify it as this would involve a huge expendi-
In the second part of this chapter, we will present a ture of computing power. If, for example, you
(non-exhaustive) list of some of the ways through which wanted to modify a transaction that was written
companies - large and small - are looking to harness the 10 blocks ago, a hacker would have to modify
power of blockchain technologies. and recalculate all 10 blocks or cut the chain and
invalidate the next 9 blocks. This is, in reality,
3.1. Blockchain benefits an almost impossible practice to implement on
many blockchains.
In the previous chapter, we briefly introduced what block- 6. Highly secured structure by design: All
chain is and some of its main features. Now we focus on blockchain transactions are encrypted so it gives
the "why", i.e. why we are hearing more and more about the network high integrity.
it and the benefits that block- chain can provide to busi- 7. Programmability: instructions can be included
nesses and private citizens. What has acted as a catalyst, within blocks that trigger specific actions when
determining its diffusion, has been the innovative con- certain conditions occur.
cept of the Internet of Value [35]. This term refers to the 8. Incontestability: the decision to validate a
use of the Internet as a means of transferring and storing piece of information is not taken only by a node,
values of all kinds, not just currencies and securities, but but through a secure consensus-gathering mech-
also intellectual property, music, art, scientific results, anism within the network, making it particularly
etc. In this context, Blockchain plays an essential role difficult to contest the choice made by the most.
since it guarantees, for this purpose, several important
advantages, including:
1. Efficiency: the exchange of values takes place
3.2. Promising applications of blockchain
in "near" real time. From what has been said so far, it is clear that the listed
2. Decentralization: This is perhaps the most benefits are closely related to the world of finance and ev-
important concept of a blockchain, as there is no erything that surrounds it. In fact, initially, the Blockchain
need for a third party or intermediary to vouch was used to certify transactions between people. Nowa-
for the validation of transactions and information days, anyone has already heard terms like Bitcoin[32],
entered into the distributed database. In fact, a Cryptocurrency, Ethereum [36, 37], smart contract [38],
consensus mechanism shared and accepted by all etc. In recent years, however, the areas of application
nodes in the network is used to validate transac- of the Blockchain have multiplied, going to affect sec-
tions and blocks. For this reason, the Blockchain tors such as: logistics, public administration, food chain,
is defined as a trustless system. health care, telecommunications, insurance and so on.
3. Distributed Structure: Since the data is repli- Despite the great ferment, the technologies are not yet
cated on all nodes of the network and geograph- fully mature and there are still few concrete applications.
ically dispersed across the globe, the system is The flip side of the coin is that there are still huge oppor-
highly resistant to failure or cyber-attacks. Since tunities to be exploited: only 37% of large companies and
each node has a copy of the entire database, there 20% of Italian SMEs are familiar with these technologies.
is no single point of failure and any damage to Less than 2% of large and 1% of small companies have
a peer in the network does not affect the overall started projects [39]. Internationally, in 2019, there were
system operation, unlike in centralized systems 488 blockchain and distributed ledger projects launched
where a cyber-attack or a data center blackout worldwide, up 56% from 2018, bringing the total to 1,045
can interrupt the service of an entire system. This over the last 4 years. But of these only 158 are implemen-
redundancy gives the entire network high avail- tations, of which just 47 are already operational, the rest
ability and reliability. are experiments or Proof of Concept, while as many as
4. Transparency: The data contained in the block- 330 are just announcements. Despite the pandemic we
chain are available to all nodes of the network are experiencing, the growth of blockchain-based tech-
and in the case of public networks, they are also nologies has not seen any slowdown. On the contrary,
freely available to anyone who accesses the net- there has been significant growth. Out of 1,242 initiatives
work, while not actively contributing to the sub- surveyed from 2016 to 2020 [40], there are 267 initiatives
sistence of the system. This feature provides the launched in the last twelve months at the international
blockchain with the peculiarity of being trans- level by companies and public administrations, which
parent and therefore trust towards the system is include 70 announcements and 197 concrete projects (of
guaranteed by this feature. which 83 are operational, the rest experiments or proof
5. Unalterability: Once the data has been writ- of concept). Compared to 2019, concrete projects grew
ten in the blockchain, it is extremely difficult to by 59%, while announcements dropped by 80%, a sign of
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Francesca Fallucchi et al. CEUR Workshop Proceedings 80–88
a market that is moving away from media hype to focus specific programming language that run on a blockchain
on more operational initiatives; 47% of cases mapped in and represent a set of rules agreed upon by the parties
2020 use existing platforms, a sign that operators’ focus involved in the project. If, at run-time, these predefined
is shifting more toward application development and less rules are followed, the smart contract executes automati-
on creating new platforms. cally to produce the expected output. Depending on the
In this context, almost all the projects currently in use, underlying agreement, these lines of code enable both de-
in the development and design phase cannot disregard centralized execution and verification and enforcement
the presence of smart contracts, i.e. computer-based con- of the previously defined contract terms. Smart contracts
tracts that allow the full exploitation of the potential of allow for the exchange of anything that may have value
the blockchain. to the parties involved, for example: money, stocks, prop-
In the next section, we explain what smart contracts erty, etc., in a totally transparent manner, without the
are and why they are so important in the innovative need for an intermediary and keeping the system free of
context that blockchain brings. conflicts of interest. Smart contracts do not only define
While in the next one we will indicate a list of appli- the rules of the game of any agreement, they are also re-
cations and examples of Blockchain use, certainly not sponsible for the automatic execution of these rules and
exhaustive but enough to understand the enormous af- compliance with the obligations set forth. In other words,
fect that this technology is having and will have, from smart contracts are automatically executed lines of code
now on all of us. stored on a blockchain that contain predetermined and
well-defined rules with no possibility of misunderstand-
3.2.1. Smart contract ing. In this scenario, the space for fraud is reduced and
since there are no intermediaries of any kind, the costs
Nick Szabo, an American computer scientist who in- and possible risks of conflicts of interest are also limited.
vented a virtual currency called "Bit Gold" in 1998, de-
fined smart contracts as computerized transaction pro-
3.2.2. Blockchain applications and examples
tocols that execute terms of a contract[38]. A modern
definition of a smart contract could be formulated as In this section we present a review of blockchain ap-
follows: "A smart contract is an event-driven program, plications, in order to understand how and where this
written in a specific programming language (depending emerging technology is playing a leading role nowadays
on the blockchain on which it is deployed), executed and where we will see it gaining an increasingly relevant
on the nodes of a blockchain that produces as a result space in the coming years. The list below is only a part of
a state change of the distributed ledger on which it in- the possible applications, and has been selected to high-
sists." The state change is generally represented by a light also those areas where the use of a blockchain could
transaction that changes the blockchain. When a smart radically change the current scenario 2 3 .
contract is invoked, the expected outcome is purely de- Banking, Finance and payments: Financial in-
terministic based on data provided as input. Since one of stitutions are probably the most advanced sector in terms
the main characteristics of the blockchain is its quality of blockchain exploration, with initiatives capable of
of acting as a decentralized database shared among all channeling the activity of many prominent players. Since
actors that are part of the network, without the involve- banks and financial institutions essentially serve as repos-
ment of intermediaries or third parties, this peculiarity itories and secure centers for currency transfer, blockchain,
allows the smart contract to be executed without the pos- as a digitized, secure, tamper-proof ledger, can ensure
sibility of alteration, in a certain way, saving time and the same function while reducing costs and time. As an
money. These specialties are attracting the interest of example, Switzerland’s UBS [43] and Britain’s Barclays
many companies, both public and private, who are invest- [44] are already experimenting with a way to accelerate
ing large amounts of capital in this sector. Currently, the back office, money management and transfer functions
best known smart contracts are those that insist on the using blockchain.
Ethereum blockchain, but others are also emerging such Insurance: Blockchain technology enables a wide
as, just to name a few, EOS [41] and BSC (Binance Smart range of options, for example for the decentralized man-
Chain) [42]. Since these blockchains are "turing com- agement of an instant policy, capable of significantly low-
plete" 1 it is possible to create highly customizable smart ering both complexity and activation and management
contracts and the areas of application can be the most var- costs, while also eliminating the need for intermediation.
ied, not only the financial field, but embracing virtually all Thanks to blockchain, insurers can automate many opera-
industries. After providing a definition of smart contract
let’s see what smart contracts are, in more detail. A smart 2
https://tech4future.info/blockchain-cose-esempi-
contract is composed of a set of instructions written in a applicazioni/
3
https://www.blockchain4innovation.it/iot/blockchain-
1
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turing_completeness benefici-concreti-le-applicazioni-piu-promettenti-27-settori/
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Francesca Fallucchi et al. CEUR Workshop Proceedings 80–88
tions: the premiums calculation, the system of appraisals number of grants to explore innovative solutions using
and claims settlements, obtaining and guaranteeing the blockchain technology for secure digital identity manage-
insured maximum transparency at every stage [45]. ment, to improve the anti-counterfeiting capabilities of
Agrifood sector: The food supply chain is prob- digital documentation to prevent fraud and forgery [50].
ably one of the most complex fields of application, as In addition to reducing the number of human resources
the number of actors and products involved is extremely needed to deliver many services, the blockchain would
high, as is the number of relationships that are structured also provide a huge motivational factor for civil servants,
through the life stages of the product, from its cultiva- who would see the results of their work tracked in a trans-
tion/farming to its consumption on the table. Keeping parent manner, including in relation to the achievement
track of everything is a huge undertaking, which the of annual performance targets.
blockchain is beginning to lighten and make much more School and academia: The Holbertson School of
efficient, especially in terms of security and transparency Software Engineering, based in San Francisco, California
for all stakeholders [46]. (USA), has announced that it will use blockchain tech-
Healthcare: Healthcare institutions suffer from a nology to authenticate academic degrees and certificates
chronic inability to securely share data between different [51]. Other universities have also started to implement
platforms and institutions. Better collaboration between tools based on distributed ledger technology to ensure
data providers means, in essence, a greater likelihood of greater transparency in the management of academic cer-
making accurate diagnoses, a greater likelihood of opting tificates. Another important benefit comes from saving
for effective treatments and, more generally, an increase time and costs associated with managing thousands of
in the overall ability of healthcare systems to provide paper documents.
good care. Blockchain applied to the healthcare sector Electoral voting (e-voting) [52]: Elections re-
allows hospitals, payers and other healthcare facilities quire authentication of voter identity, secure storage of
to share access to their networks without compromising records and a fully transparent counting and counting
data security and integrity. Startup Gem 4 has launched process to determine the winner. Blockchains can serve
Gem Health Network, a platform based on distributed as a useful tool for selecting, monitoring and counting
ledgers (and opensource peer-to-peer project Ethereum, votes while reducing attempts at electoral fraud. Follow
in particular) combined with multi-signature and multi- My Vote 6 has already been used in testing during the US
factor authentication technology to create a highly secure presidential election as an end-to-end verifiable online
universal data infrastructure. Tierion 5 is another startup voting system.
that has developed a platform for data storage and verifi- Logistics and large-scale retail trade: Lo-
cation in the healthcare sector. gistics is one of the privileged areas for the digitaliza-
Pharmaceutical industry: In the case of pharma- tion of processes. Thanks to blockchain, goods can be
ceuticals, the blockchain makes a decisive contribution uniquely tracked during transport and storage in the
to the supply chain, especially to avoid counterfeiting warehouse, minimizing the possibility of error. This can
and fraud, which would otherwise be very difficult to be used by large-scale retail systems to manage the en-
identify, since, without a unique identifier, it is extremely
tire supply chain more safely and efficiently. This is a
difficult to recognise a genuine drug from a non-original very interesting detail, if we consider that this technol-
one [47]. ogy can be easily combined with other services, such
Government and public administration (PA) as data analysis based on artificial intelligence, which
[48]: The introduction of blockchain in PA procedures allows optimizing order processes thanks to predictive
represents one of the most interesting application areas simulations [53].
as it will produce a real revolution in the quality of ser- Buying and selling of goods and services:
vices offered to citizens. The scenario is not an easy one Critical issues found in the buying and selling of movable
to implement, and there are what we might call gener- and immovable assets include lack of transparency pri-
ational barriers in terms of digital culture, not only on marily during and after transactions, excessive reliance
the part of the institutions, but above all on the part of on paper, and possible fraud and errors in public records.
the end users, the citizens. The blockchain could make Blockchain offers a way to reduce the need for paper
services efficient and transparent, the request for useful support for recording data and thus leads to faster trans-
data would be available almost in real time, and it would actions related to contract drafting, identification of coun-
also allow the certification of authenticity, timestamping terparties and precise details of the purchase and sale.
and ownership of the provided data [49]. In this field, the Decentralized databases applied to this industry can help
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has provided a record, track and transfer e.g. land titles, title deeds, liens
etc. and help ensure that documents are accurate and
4
https://enterprise.gem.co/health/
5 6
https://tierion.com/ https://followmyvote.com/
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Francesca Fallucchi et al. CEUR Workshop Proceedings 80–88
verifiable. Purchasing of services can enjoy the same ones.
benefits as processes are streamlined and payments are
secure and directed to those involved, without the need
for intermediaries. Ubitquity 7 has developed a platform 4. Blockchain, privacy and GDPR
for financial institutions and mortgage companies to man- compliance
age the related documents in a fully transparent manner,
improving back-office administration and reducing as- In the chapter we analyze an issue that cuts across all ap-
sociated costs. Visa and DocuSign 8 presented a report plications related to blockchain technology, in fact we ex-
documenting an experiment conducted in the car leasing amine the difficult relationship and integration between
industry. The two used distributed ledgers to build a blockchain technology and personal data protection.
proof-of-concept system for a process that culminates Every action we daily perform on the network leaves
in the leasing of a car in a completely autonomous and a fingerprint that, if ordered chronologically, allows us to
unrelated manner. define our "life stream". Combining our "life stream" with
Art and collecting: NFTs (Non Fungible Tokens) that of all users around the globe, we can only imagine
9
are literally revolutionizing the art market and beyond. the immense amount of data that surrounds us, defined
The possibility of making a digital work unique has con- as Big Data, i.e. structured and unstructured information
tributed to give value to goods that otherwise, due to that needs to be aggregated and analyzed in order to
their natural reproducibility, would have been completely be better exploited. More generally, the term Big Data
devoid of it. This phenomenon has led many artists to refers to that set of data that is too large and complex to
tokenize their digital works on special platforms (Super- be analyzed with traditional application and computing
Rare 10 , Rarible 11 , etc.) that regulate the market, giving software. Big data are strategic in many fields as they
the creator a royalty for each subsequent transaction. improve the user experience; they allow the creation of
An anthology of works by the digital artist Beeple was machine learning models; they provide important indica-
recently auctioned at Christie’s for a sum close to 70 mil- tions for the development and improvement of existing
lion dollars. Collectibles are also benefiting from NFT products; they allow the realization of predictive models
technology as the U.S. NBA 12 is selling "top shoot" of its that identify frauds and potential malfunctions of sys-
basketball players. Another famous example is the collec- tems; they provide useful information to improve busi-
tion of pixel art images called Cryptopunks 13 , which has ness procedures and finally they give a push towards
currently reached staggering figures. NFTs also offer the innovation as they can be useful to create new products
ability to sell digital versions of some of their tangible and strategies anticipating (or channeling) the desires of
products, thus creating entirely new markets. Gucci , has users. Consequently, it is of paramount importance that
released virtual sneakers in the form of NFTs 14 . this growing amount of data is stored securely, tamper-
Beyond these examples there are many other fields of proof, and without the possibility of being counterfeited
possible application of blockchain, such as: industry 4.0 and altered. In this perspective, blockchain technology
[54]; electricity [55]; telecommunications 15 ; notary 16 ; can be a useful ally of big data to manage the limitations
industrial and intellectual property 17 ; retail 18 ; gaming 19 ; just highlighted because once a data is saved within the
charities 20 and defence 21 just to name the most famous blockchain acquires the following features: decentralized,
transparent and immutable (these features have already
7
https://www.ubitquity.io/ been described in previous chapters so we will not go
8
https://www.docusign.com/products/blockchain
9 into them in this section). The other side of the coin
https://ethereum.org/en/nft/
10
https://superrare.com/ is represented by the impact that this collaboration has
11
https://rarible.com/ and will have on privacy and on the right to protection
12
https://nbatopshot.com/ and confidentiality of personal data. Fraudulent uses and
13
https://www.larvalabs.com/cryptopunks data breaches involving companies and governments are
14
https://www.inputmag.com/style/gucci-virtual-sneakers-nft-
wanna-fashion-augmented-reality
increasingly frequent. In fact, the "Cambridge Analytica"
15
https://www2.deloitte.com/de/de/pages/technology-media- scandal [56] has caused a stir, where data ideally sold
and-telecommunications/articles/blockchain-at-telco.html for market research have instead been used, according
16
https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbestechcouncil/2019/11/12/a- to the investigation, to support the election campaign
blockchain-based-digital-notary-what-you-need-to-
of the US President by a third party government. It will
know/?sh=393ebd7d4557
17
https://www.automation.com/en-us/articles/january- therefore be necessary to find a balance between current
2021/the-future-of-blockchain-in-intellectual-property legislation (first and foremost the GDPR - General Data
18
https://101blockchains.com/blockchain-in-retail/ Protection Regulation [57, 58]), research/development
19
https://playtoearn.net/blockchaingames and the use of these new technologies. In fact, there are
20
https://academy.ivanontech.com/blog/exploring-the-
blockchain-charity-sector-and-charity-projects
21
https://eda.europa.eu/webzine/issue14/cover- story/blockchain-technology-in-defence
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Francesca Fallucchi et al. CEUR Workshop Proceedings 80–88
some obvious frictions that it is absolutely necessary to model, 2014, pp. 191–196. doi:10.1109/WETICE.
overcome with respect to the principles of Accountability, 2014.65.
Data Protection by Design and Data Minimization, in or- [3] I. Bashir, Mastering Blockchain, 2017.
der to make the use of these technologies compliant with [4] C. Napoli, G. Pappalardo, E. Tramontana, A math-
European legislation. The European Parliament, having ematical model for file fragment diffusion and a
taken note of these and other doubts, has realized an im- neural predictor to manage priority queues over
portant study [59], in which it suggests three policies to bittorrent, International Journal of Applied Math-
make blockchain projects compatible with the mandatory ematics and Computer Science 26 (2016) 147–160.
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