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So what's the difference between the blockchain and a database?

“How is the blockchain different from a database?" is a question that often pops up and it's an important question. In your typical Excel database one person enters data. That person may even share that database with someone else who can then add additional data, edit the data, or delete the data. And that is one of the biggest differences between the blockchain and a database: Different parties can create, read, update, and delete data in a database. In the blockchain, on the other hand, data can only be written to a block, it cannot be updated or deleted. And, depending on whether the blockchain is public, private, or permissioned, not everyone can always even read the block. Let’s walk through an example:

Let's say Keep Calm Logistics contracts Acme Delivery to pick up a package in Nairobi. While negotiating the contract Keep Calm and Acme agree on what data to track; the date the package is picked up, the time it’s picked up, a scan of the package to confirm receipt, and a price for picking it up. Acme’s delivery service scans the package when they pick it up. The scan serves to verify that the first part of the job has been performed on a certain date and time. This data is recorded and funds from Keep Calm's account are withdrawn to pay Acme for the service.

Some of this could be done on a database. A database could keep track of the four agreed upon parameters. A database can even pull data from an API. A database might even be able to withdrawn from a dedicated account. 

What a database cannot do that a blockchain can is make sure that the data is not changed in any way. A database cannot exist in a distributed network adding to the security and verity of the data. A database cannot exist along a larger chain of transactions with an encrypted hash number to further heighten its security.  And if a database cannot be trusted or remain immutable, would you want to use it to withdraw or deposit funds? Lastly, if a database can be shared it can be read by anyone, including people, companies, or organizations that it is not intended for. If Keep Calm and Acme use a private blockchain, only Keep Calm and Acme can read what they put on their blockchain. 

And those are some of the biggest differences between databases and the blockchain.

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