You've heard a lot about the benefits of blockchain include transparency, immutability, and decentralization. Blockchain is a special type of database. transaction history is recorded in a decentralized and distributed ledger. But is that all? So is there a way to verify the authenticity of transactions without exposing the data?
At this point, Zero-Knowledge Proof comes into our lives. In my article, I will try to explain how it works and its effectiveness in the field of blockchain.
What is Zero Knowledge Proof?
Zero-knowledge proof (ZKP) is the method by which one party (proving) can prove to the other party (verifying) that a piece of information is true without disclosing any additional information.
ZKPs are used in a variety of applications, including:
Authentication: The user can prove to have a particular password without revealing it to a server.
Confidentiality: The user can prove to a server that he has certain information without revealing the information he has.
Security: The user can prove to a server that he is who he says he is, without revealing any sensitive information about himself.
It may sound confusing, but basically, ZKPs are a powerful tool that can be used to maintain security and privacy in a variety of applications.
Let's look at how ZKP is used for authentication with an example. Imagine you want to log in to a website, the website will ask for some information to verify the user. This information will be the username and password as standard, but so we are actually revealing our password to the website. Instead, we can use a ZKP to prove we have the password without revealing it.
The website generates a random challenge and the user submits it. The user also uses their password to generate a response to the query. The website then validates the response to the query to confirm that the user knows their password.
The user's password will never be disclosed on the website, thus protecting the user's privacy. The website also makes sure that the user is who he says he is and the website is secure.
As ZKPs become more widely adopted, they will become much more integrated into our lives. For example, imagine that we did it without revealing our identity in the voting system. Wouldn't it be great?
Let's take a look at the situation in the cryptocurrency markets.
We see that many projects are working using ZKPs. Zcash, which uses security and privacy in payment methods, StarkNET, Loopring and Zksync, which use ZKP technology to increase efficiency and scalability in layer-1 blockchains. MINA, which uses ZKPs to compress transactions on the blockchain to a small size, Dark Forest, the most popular application in the gaming industry, Manta Network, which provides a range of products and services that provide privacy for blockchain projects.