Abstract: The invention relates to distributed ledger technologies such as consensus-based blockchains. A blockchain transaction may include digital resources that are encumbered by a locking script that encodes a set of conditions that must be fulfilled before the encumbered resources may be used (e.g., transferring ownership/control of encumbered resources). A worker (e.g., a computer system) performs one or more computations to generate a proof, which is encoded as part of an unlocking script. A verification algorithm may utilize the proof, a verification key, and additional data such as a cryptographic material associated with the worker (e.g., a digital signature) to verify that digital assets of the transaction should be transferred. As a result of the validation of this transaction, any third party is able to check the contract was executed corrected rather than re-executing the contract, thus saving computational power.

Abstract: A protocol is described which: (i) allows storage nodes to be rewarded for maintaining a public blockchain; and (ii) verifies the integrity of the blockchain with the help of a Proof-of-Blockchain Storage (PoBS) scheme. The protocol provides a way to cryptographically check if a data file stored on a remote server is intact using a challenge-response method. The protocol is secured against a man-in-the-middle attack. A malicious peer cannot pass the challenge to a third party which is storing the data and give back the response. The scheme is also publicly verifiable.

Abstract: Methods and devices for propagating transactions in a network of nodes, each node having one or more connections to other nodes. The method includes determining that one of the nodes is a bottleneck for propagation of transactions; receiving, over a first time period, a plurality of new transactions from one or more first nodes in the network of nodes; combining the plurality of new transactions using network coding and a local encoding vector to generate a message; and sending the message and a global encoding vector to one or more second nodes in the network of nodes instead of sending the plurality of new transactions to the one or more second nodes. The network may be a blockchain network.

Abstract: Methods and devices for two nodes to authenticate each other as credentialed by a group of autonomous specialized nodes, without involving the group or involving a centralized certificate manager or authenticator. The method may involve a first node and a second node using bilinear pairing operations involving their respective identifiers and secret points to derive the same session key. Provided the secret points and identifiers were obtained from the group using the group private key, the bilinear pairing operation leads to generation of the same session key at each of the two nodes, thereby authenticating their respective credentials and enabling trusted communications between the two nodes.

Abstract: Methods and devices that manage the secure distribution of credentials from a group of autonomous specialized nodes to a requesting node. The secure distribution of credentials may uses secret share and a group private key that none of the nodes reconstructs or possesses. The credentials include an identifier for the requesting node and a secret point that the node assembles from portions of the secret point provided by each of a plurality of the specialized nodes, where the secret point is based on the group private key and a map-to-point hash of the requesting node's identifier.

Abstract: Validator nodes and methods of operating a validator node to process blockchain transactions. The validator node provides a plurality of mining nodes with access to a set of unconfirmed transactions, typically by providing a hash of those transactions, in exchange for a token from each of the mining nodes. If one of the plurality of mining nodes successfully mines a block containing the set of unconfirmed transactions, the validator node refunds the token to that mining node and retains the remaining tokens. If a miner other than one of the plurality of mining nodes successfully mines a block before any of the plurality of mining nodes is able to mine a block containing the set of unconfirmed transactions, then the validator node transfers to each of the plurality of mining nodes a modified token.

Abstract: A computer-implemented method to validate a block at a node within a network of nodes implementing a blockchain conforming to a blockchain protocol. This may be the Bitcoin protocol or an alternative. The method includes determining, serially, that each unspent transaction output referenced as an input in each of the plurality of transactions is unique and, based on that determination allocating each transaction in the plurality of transactions to one of two or more parallel processors, and verifying, in parallel, by the two or more parallel processors, that the transactions in the plurality of transactions comply with transaction-level validation criteria. The node also determines that the block meets block-level validation criteria. If the transactions comply with transaction-level validation criteria and the block complies with block-level validation criteria, the block is deemed valid and the node forwards the block to one or more peer nodes in the network.