When we talk about blockchain technology, we say it is a public distributed ledger. However, not all blockchains are accessible to the public.
There are 3 types of blockchain networks – public, private and permissioned.
While public blockchain networks are more popular, private and permissioned blockchains are less known. The cryptocurrencies blockchains that you know of like Bitcoin and Ethereum are public blockchains.
On the contrary, enterprise blockchain development services mostly use private and permissioned blockchains to streamline and decentralize their workflow.
With private and permissioned blockchain, companies can boost their efficiency, bring transparency and establish trust in their system.So, what’s the difference between the 3 types of blockchains?The difference lies in the way data is accessible to individuals.
Other points of difference are access, authority, transaction speed, consensus, efficiency, Data Handling & Immutability. Wondering how these 3 types of blockchain maintain their decentralized nature while giving companies a tamper-proof technology.
Let us understand the blockchain types and their features in this blog.
What is Public Blockchain Network?
A public blockchain is a permissionless network where everyone is free to join the network and participate in its activities.
A public blockchain is a permissionless network where everyone is free to join the network and participate in its activities.
The data available on the public blockchain is available for everyone to see, verify, and audit the data. Moreover, once the data is stored on the public blockchain, it’s impossible to alter it making it perfect for cryptocurrencies transaction purposes.
As anyone can access the data, read, write and audit it on the public blockchain, it’s 100% decentralized. It means that no single organisation or entity have full control over the data or blockchain activities.
Further, public blockchains are self-governed as all the participants have equal rights.
However, public blockchain seems problematic when you try to implement it in the enterprise model.
That is why blockchain development companies do not use public blockchain networks for developing enterprise blockchain development solutions.
Features Of Public Blockchain Network
Here are some notable features of a public blockchain network.
1.Enhanced Security
Public blockchain offer enhanced security with tamper-proof blocks and a distributed network of nodes. It means that no one can hack into the blocks and alter their data.
Even if someone tries to do so, he will have to hack 51% of the nodes which is impossible.
Due to its security features, the public blockchain is perfect for transaction purposes.
2. Open Environment
Public blockchains have an open environment which is unrestricted to all. You do not need any permission to join the network or view the data.
It is open to all irrespective of your geological location or any other factor. Anyone can use the public blockchain to mine cryptocurrencies or send and receive crypto.
3. User Privacy
It is one of the features of public blockchain that people love. Public blockchain network upholds user privacy by allowing people to anonymously send and receive crypto payments.
No one on the network uses their real names. Moreover, you do not need to provide any personal identification documents or information to participate in the network activities.
There is no way to track back the real user, their name or their address with their wallet address.
4. 100% Decentralization
You can call public blockchain as truly decentralized as it’s permissionless and open. Being a 100% decentralized public blockchain network does not entertain the authority of any single organisation or company.
The blockchain network functions as per the DAO or self-governing principles. The responsibility of maintaining and running the network lies solely on the nodes which function independently and in a democratic nature.
5. High Transparency
On a publicly distributed ledger, all the data stored on the blocks are available to everyone. Anyone can access the data, view and verify it. You can check and confirm your transactions and even view the live transactions in real-time on the public blockchain.
Due to its high transparency, public blockchain leaves no scope for the discrepancy or any type of corruption.
The level of transparency that public blockchain offers is unmatched by any other technology.
6. Immutability
Another fascinating feature of a public blockchain is data immutability. What does immutability mean?
Data immutability means that once data is recorded on the blocks, no one can change it. It is one of the factors behind the high security of these public blockchain networks.
The hash mechanism of the blocks ensures the immutability factor. All the blocks on the network have a unique hash. Every block contains the hash of its previous block and its own hash.
Firstly no one can hack the blockchain network. Even if he does, as soon as he changes the data, the hash of the concerned block also changes.
The altered hash does not match the original hash of the block. So the blockchain system quickly identifies the error and restores the original data.
Therefore, there is no way to change the data ensuring data immutability.
What is a Private Blockchain?
A private blockchain is where a single organisation controls the network. The organisation in control decides who can access the network, and who can edit data or participate in the activities.
Moreover, the organisation also controls what an individual can access or view on the blockchain.
As an admin, you can give permission to individuals to view only specific data necessary for their work. Therefore, it helps companies protect their sensitive data and avoid data leaks.
Enterprise blockchain development services usually use private blockchain networks as it gives organisations a way to streamline their workflow in a decentralized, secure, and controlled environment.
Moreover, a private blockchain is not anonymous like a public blockchain. The operator or a defined protocol integrated with smart contracts verifies the identity of the individuals before permitting them.
That’s not all!
The institution or the private blockchain operator has the right to override, edit or delete any data on the blockchain as they see fit.
So, considering all the rights that institutions have in a private blockchain, decentralization is compromised at many levels.
However, with a private blockchain, companies are able to boost their efficiency & productivity, enhance security and bring trust into the system.
Advantages of Private Blockchain:
- Private blockchains offer greater control over the network, as only authorized participants can access and validate transactions.
- They offer higher scalability and faster transaction speeds than public blockchains.
- Private blockchains can be customized to meet the specific needs of the organization using them. That is why blockchain development company build their blockchain apps, platforms and solutions on private blockchain networks.
What is Permissioned Blockchain?
A permissioned blockchain is a combination of both public and private blockchain networks. By taking the good points of both the network, permissioned blockchain empowers organisations to boost their efficiency with unique attributes of the blockchain.
Advantages of Private Blockchain:
- Permissioned blockchains offer a balance between security and accessibility, providing greater privacy and control than public blockchains, while still allowing for a wider range of participants than private blockchains.
- They can be customized to meet the specific needs of the organization using them.
- Permissioned blockchains offer greater scalability and faster transaction speeds than public blockchains.
How is permissioned blockchain different from private and public blockchain?
- The organisation do not have full control over the data.
- Unlike private blockchain, in permissioned blockchain companies can only permit or authorized individuals.
- After the verification, anyone can join the network to perform specific tasks
- Users can do only those activities for which they have permission
Permissioned blockchain is mostly used in BaaS which is Blockchain-as-a-Service. Blockchain development company use permissioned blockchain to design solutions to resolve the inefficiencies of existing business models helping them scale their growth.
Blockchain expert developers trust private and permissioned blockchain networks to build dApps and solutions for businesses due to their high efficiency and scalability.
Difference Between Public, Private & Permissioned Blockchain
Conclusion
We cannot point out one blockchain type as superior or inferior to another. Public and private blockchain networks serve different purposes which are suitable for them.
A public blockchain is perfect for cryptocurrencies and digital asset transactions. While private or permissioned blockchain is appropriate for blockchain enterprise services or businesses looking to build blockchain apps and blockchain solutions.
Private blockchain ensures high security of sensitive company data, low transaction cost, high efficiency and scalability for the enterprises. It does all this by keeping the company in control of its data and its access (who can view or edit data)
Contact us to explore our custom blockchain development services that are tailored to meet your business goals.
I am the CEO and founder of Blocktech Brew, a team of blockchain and Web 3.0 experts who are helping businesses adopt, implement and integrate blockchain solutions to achieve business excellence. Having successfully delivered 1000+ projects to clients across 150+ countries, our team is dedicated to designing and developing smart solutions to scale your business growth. We are focused on harnessing the power of Web 3.0 technologies to offer world-class blockchain, NFT, Metaverse, Defi, and Crypto development services to businesses to help them achieve their goals.
