Proof of Burn (PoB): what is it and how does it work?

Never heard of Proof of Burn (PoB)? The most common consent methods are the Proof of Work e Proof of Stakes, but they are not the only ones, there are less known methods of consent such as the Proof of Burn. We find in this guide what this consensus mechanism is for.

Proof of Burn (PoB): What is the consensus mechanism for?

In the world of blockchain there is no bank that deals with validating transactions, so this operation must be carried out by the nodes in a manner collaborative.

One of the functions that blockchain technology performs is to prevent some nodes from creating money from nothing.

In addition, there may also be "dishonest" nodes that attempt to use a coin twice, this process is called double spending.

An example can be a user who makes the purchase in an E-Commerce and immediately tries to send the same tokens to an Exchange.

In order to avoid double expenses, it is useful for nodes to reach an agreement to understand which transactions must be considered valid or not, for example by voting the choice, but this procedure is not easy as an attacker can manipulate the vote creating thousands of knots.

What is the Proof of work?

Il Proof of work it is a consensus mechanism used for Bitcoins but also for other cryptocurrencies.
In practice, miners in order to generate a block in the blockchain must solve a cryptographic puzzle that requires heavy computational effort.

If they manage to solve the puzzle, the node will have the opportunity to insert the block in the blockchain. Here, too, a hacker could try to tamper with the function, but if the miner's network is large enough as well as being very difficult it is also expensive.

What is the Proof of Burn?

Il Proof of Burn it is a consensus mechanism that bases its forces on low energy waste.
The nodes in this case are able to destroy or burn the tokens that want to generate the next blocks in order to receive a reward.

The "mind" of Proof of Burn, Iain Stewart, declares that by deleting a portion of its tokens, one acquires one greater power of virtual calculation.
The more tokens are burned, the more likely you are to get rewarded.

Le most famous cryptocurrencies using the Proof of Burn are:

- SlimCoin
- Counterparty
- Factom.