The US Department of Defense is researching into using a key technology used in digital cryptocurrencies to create tamper-proof military computer systems.
Blockchain technology could be employed to create secure networks, including those systems used to control America's nuclear weapons.
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has set a goal of looking into the implementation of blockchain to create more secure military networks. This could fundamentally alter how sensitive military systems are secured
According to Quartz, using blockchain technology will allow military system administrators to determine if a network or database has been tampered with. DARPA reportedly awarded a $1.8 million contract to a computer security firm to begin tests in September 2015.
With Bitcoin, blockchain technology is used to ensure that bitcoins sent from one wallet to another are tracked and accounted for. Using blockchain ensures integrity across worldwide networks.
At its most basic stage, the blockchain technology is a decentralized ledger and a universal record that keeps track of data of all the transactions that take place in a database or network each time it is viewed or altered.
It then attaches a unique, persistent code, also known as a "block," to the asset being guarded. Each block is chained to another block. Because of its distributed nature, it is very difficult to modify data to hide activity.
Timothy Booher, who leads the DARPA blockchain efforts, compared the use of blockchain technology to defending a castle.