This is open document. [Are blockchains immune to all malicious attacks?]
Introduction
Blockchain, an innovation by FinTech, has attracted considerable attention since its origin as a technology to enable bitcoin-based online transactions (Pilkington 2016; Sundararajan 2016). Although bitcoin is a controversial form of digital currency facing skepticism and distrust (Hur et al. 2015) and its legal, social, and economic impacts
have been inadequately studied (Mainelli and Smith 2015), blockchain technology is acknowledged for its advantages in recording transactions and events. Many believe that blockchain, similar to the Internet, will revolutionize how people and organizations will manage transactions and assets (Swan 2015).
Blockchain technology enforces a distributed consensus and cryptographic transactions, rendering it difficult to compromise the integrity of its records without being noticed by an entire network. Many advocates believe that it can completely prevent such malicious activities as double-spending and hacking (Baxter 2016; Camp 2016). However, others still remain skeptical.
This paper answers the question of what can blockchain technology do and not do to fight malicious online activity. Section 2 defines the characteristics and innovative applications of blockchain technology. Section 3 reviews state-of-the-art technologies for detecting online fraud and intrusion. Sections 4 and 5 explore the types of frauds and attacks that blockchain technology might prevent and behaviors to which it remains vulnerable. Section 6 recommends anti-attack measures and the last section calls for new research on how blockchains can fight online malicious attacks. (continue)