There's no doubt about it — the food and beverage sector is undergoing a technological revolution. And one of the emerging technologies at the heart of that revolution is the blockchain. Specifically, it’s the Helium blockchain and its security features that are being adopted by this segment of manufacturing.
The team here at Buffalo Market has been using the Helium blockchain for a while now to empower companies within the food and beverage sector. And one thing we've learned along this journey is that Helium is an excellent tool for cybersecurity.
In this post, we're going to be looking at how the Helium blockchain can be used to improve your security posture in a variety of ways. But first, let's start with a definition.
For those that don't know, the Helium blockchain is a branded branch of blockchain technology that relies on verified hotspots rather than open-source crowdsourcing.
That might be a lot to digest, so here's a quick breakdown of what that means.
For any blockchain to work, information that is stored in the blockchain needs to be verified by multiple endpoints. In a typical blockchain, anyone with a computer or server can act as one of those endpoints.
However, this isn't always secure, as your security is limited by the security practices (or lack thereof!) of your endpoints.
Helium solves this problem by enforcing strict security policies on all of its endpoints, called hotspots. This means that no one can act as a Helium hotspot without first being approved and meeting certain standards.
Of course, none of this is to say that traditional blockchain technology isn't fairly secure. In fact, it's very secure, which is one of the reasons it's become so popular in recent years.
The Helium blockchain benefits from all of these built-in security features, so let's cover those to help you better understand why blockchain technology is such a valuable security tool.
The main advantage of blockchain technology is that it is decentralized. This means that there is no central authority that controls the network. Instead, it is distributed among all of the users in the network. This makes it very difficult for anyone to hack the network or manipulate the data that is stored in the blockchain.
Decentralization also makes blockchain technology more accessible without making it less secure. It means that more endpoints (or in the case of the Helium blockchain, hotspots) can be deployed, while each endpoint naturally maintains a high level of security.
Another advantage of blockchain technology is that it includes encryption and validation. This means that all the data in the blockchain is encrypted and can only be accessed by authorized users. This makes it very difficult for anyone to hack into the system, which again leads to your data being very well secured.
Encrypted data is super secure, especially in the blockchain, as there are very few (and sometimes no) fast solutions for getting by it. You either have the encryption key or you don't.
And because only authorized users can access the blockchain, there is very little chance of a hacker getting away with hacking a blockchain. It would be visible to all other authorized users, again adding to its high overall security.
Blockchain technology can be either private or public. If it is private, then only authorized users can access the data. If it is public, then anyone can access the data.
For this reason, public solutions are generally more affordable (if not completely free) while private solutions tend to be paid options. The Helium blockchain is a bit of an exception to this rule because it is open source while also requiring approval and validation (like a private blockchain).
What's important to note is that private solutions are generally more secure at the expense of being less transparent. Public solutions are still very secure, but there is less oversight than with a private solution.
Another advantage of blockchain technology is that it maintains a record of every transaction. This is because all the data in the blockchain is immutable. This means that it cannot be changed or deleted.
That might not sound like a big deal on the surface until you realize that nearly every other type of data we store is mutable. Even when it isn't supposed to be, a hacker can still go in and change things.
Blockchain technology, however, is by design immutable. There is, quite literally, no way to alter it that we currently know of that wouldn't alert others to the fact that it has been altered. This has pros and cons, but when it comes to storing data like supply chain transactions, it's incredibly useful.
One of the unique offerings from the Helium blockchain in terms of security is that only trusted hotspots are allowed. This goes a long way towards improving the overall security of the blockchain, increasing the security you get from each of your devices.
Every hotspot is required to meet certain security standards, which is unique when compared to alternative options.
Other blockchain solutions have a tendency to begin open source and decentralized, then gradually become centralized due to mining pools. The Helium blockchain is built to prevent this from happening, making it a more secure and decentralized solution for everyone using it.
Lastly, the Helium blockchain provides extra security by remaining secure even at scale. No matter the size of your business, you'll have access to security features that will keep you, your devices, and your clients secured.
The only cost of scaling up is the literal cost of each transaction, making it extremely easy to predict the cost and possibility of upscaling your operations.
The team at Buffalo Market has been using Helium blockchain for years to secure and streamline every aspect of our business. And we've used it to help other CPGs reach their goals, too.
To learn more about Helium blockchain security and other solutions for the food and beverage sector, head over to our blog or get in touch today to learn how we can help grow your CPG!