Guide
How Blockchain Is Used in Cybersecurity, Data Science, & Software Engineering
Written By Joseph Eaton
Last updated on July 15, 2022
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Written By Joseph Eaton
Course Report strives to create the most trust-worthy content about coding bootcamps. Read more about Course Report’s Editorial Policy and How We Make Money.
Course Report strives to create the most trust-worthy content about coding bootcamps. Read more about Course Report’s Editorial Policy and How We Make Money.
The last few years have seen people buzzing about the possibilities of blockchain technology. Bitcoin has been a popular topic for some time, but there’s more to blockchain than just Bitcoin! Blockchain applications in cybersecurity, data science, and software engineering are on the rise.
Learn about some of the ways that blockchain is used across different industries and how it’s growing. We’re diving into 6 companies that are already adopting blockchain, salary expectations in each industry, and 5 blockchain bootcamps for anyone interested in learning more!
Most people hear the word blockchain and immediately think of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum. However, blockchain can do much more than cryptocurrency. Blockchain technology is revolutionizing the way we handle data in most industries.
Blockchain works by grouping data together into blocks that cannot be altered once added to the chain. This information remains secure on the record forever and new blocks are constantly added. Bitcoin, blockchain’s most popular application, uses blocks to store and validate transaction data.
Each block contains a unique hash that identifies it as well as the hash of the previous block that was added which creates a long line of linked blocks otherwise known as a chain. If a block is altered, then its hash is altered as well. This then invalidates every block that comes after the altered one and it’s easy to spot the alteration since it’s a break in the chain.
Unfortunately, this feature alone isn’t enough to make this technology completely secure. A computer could easily recalculate the rest of the hashes to alter a chain which is why blockchain has proof of work. While the creation of new coins is a part of the mining process, this is what people mean when they refer to Bitcoin mining. Proof of work or mining is a series of complicated calculations meant to slow down the process of adding blocks to the chain and for Bitcoin, it takes about 10 minutes.
One of the reasons blockchain is so secure is because the data is stored on a network of different computers, not a single central server. Individual computers communicate with each other to verify the chain which means a hacker would have to breach a majority of the computers on the network. This peer-to-peer (P2P) network allows for a much more secure system of data storage and any attempts to alter a block are virtually pointless.
The tech industry is rapidly finding new uses for blockchain and novelties that exist on a blockchain like non-fungible tokens (NFT) may start seeing more serious applications shortly. Currently, there are plenty of other real-world applications for blockchain technology beyond cryptocurrencies.
Blockchain has broad applications and data science is still catching up to other industries when it comes to blockchain; it certainly hasn’t reached its full potential. Still, blockchain has potential as well as tangible uses in the field.
Blockchain provides public information about transactions. This alone is useful to data scientists because it ensures that the information they use is accurate and original.
Beyond providing useful information about other industries, blockchain has the potential to be useful for storing data specifically for public research. Instead of scraping data from other records, data scientists could draw from the same pool of data and they could trust it since they know it’s secure.
Companies that use blockchain for data science
Many data science companies that use this technology are in the field of blockchain analytics. These companies are often analyzing cryptocurrency transactions to find trends and they may not be using blockchain directly.
Data science jobs that use blockchain
The majority of the jobs that involve blockchain and data are finance-related. These titles include business analyst, blockchain & finance analyst, data analyst, blockchain security analyst, and crypto operations analyst. Job titles are highly variable from firm to firm and it’s best to look at the description to figure out what the role is. Blockchain Analysts have an average salary of $111,000 per year.
By nature, blockchain is secure which means it’s well suited for cybersecurity. The decentralized nature of blockchain makes it useful for a wide range of applications that depend on security. Better end-to-end encryption is a clear one that applies to many different industries. Blockchain might also help with preventing designated denial of service (DDoS) attacks by decentralizing domain name system entries. Cryptocurrency and finance benefit largely from this security, but there are other potential applications for it as well.
Companies that use blockchain for cybersecurity
Many different companies use blockchain to some degree to help maintain security. Many financial institutions have begun using smart contracts, a type of agreement that is fulfilled when certain conditions are met. Smart contracts are executed and stored on decentralized ledgers. Other companies use blockchain to help secure data transmission for sensitive information.
Cyber Security jobs that use blockchain
While blockchain is inherently more secure, its applications within cybersecurity are still being developed. Professionals in this field are generally called Blockchain Security Specialists and they often work in finance. Blockchain Security Specialists make between $70-$150K per year.
Software developers have barely scratched the surface of blockchain’s potential and its uses are still being discovered. Blockchain platforms are continuing to provide more solutions to problems across industries. Supply chain issues, security concerns, and data sharing are problems that affect many different types of businesses and blockchain has the potential to fix these issues.
Companies that use blockchain for software development
Security is often listed as a benefit of blockchain, but documentation is also important. Blockchain allows users to trust that their data is reliable and up to date which provides software developers across many different industries with a chance to revolutionize their field.
Software development jobs that use blockchain
Software developers are an important part of building blockchain technology and plenty of companies hire developers with specific blockchain skills. The jobs are usually listed as Blockchain Developer or Blockchain Engineer. Blockchain Developers make between $115-$200K annually.
Blockchain is a Web 3.0 technology and this is a great time to learn it! We’ve listed some resources for you to check out if you’re interested.
Length: Self-paced (don’t expect support from mentors and instructors).
Curriculum: B9 Lab offers several free videos that cover basic concepts of blockchain technology
Job Guarantee: None
Cost: Free
Length: 180 hours
Curriculum: This immersive course covers Ethereum development, hyperledger development, HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.
Guarantee: None
Cost: $15,000
Length: 12 weeks, full-time or 12 weeks, part-time
Curriculum: In Byte Academy’s Blockchain Lab, students will create their own cryptocurrency and build their own blockchain. The course covers blockchain platforms, keys and addresses, cryptocurrency, assets and tokenization, smart contracts and development, solidity, dAPPs (decentralized applications), regulatory environment, security, trustless networks and more.
Guarantee: None
Cost: $14,950
Length: 10-12 weeks
Curriculum: This bootcamp covers Ethereum, smart contracts, decentralized finance, and other essential blockchain concepts.
Job Guarantee: Full money-back within the first two weeks.
Cost: $985
Length: 8 weeks
Curriculum: EmergingEd has several different blockchain courses that cover topics like tokenization, smart contracts, and cryptocurrency.
Job Guarantee: None
Cost: $1,500 each
Length: 6 weeks part-time
Curriculum: The Engineering Fellowship is for experienced engineers to level up and become effective smart contract engineers (e.g. deep dive into the programming language Solidity, writing secure smart contracts, etc.).
Job Guarantee: Accept an offer with one of the 80+ hiring partners (and counting) and have your tuition refunded
Cost: 1 eth (~$2,270 as of 5/6/22)
Length: 4 weeks
Curriculum: In Metacamp's Blockchain Bootcamp, students learn the fundamental concepts of Rust from expert Rust developers in Singapore. The bootcamp is beginner-friendly, and meets once-a-week for four weeks.
Job Guarantee: None
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Joseph Eaton is a freelance writer and photographer who enjoys writing about tech and coding bootcamps. Joseph has been a content contributor at Course Report since 2021 and has enjoyed every second of working with the team.
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