“[Enigma] is a peer-to-peer (P2P) network, enabling different parties to jointly store and run computations on data while keeping the data completely private,” states the Enigma white paper written by Nathan, Zyskind and Pentland. “Enigma’s computational model is based on a highly optimized version of secure multiparty computation, guaranteed by a verifiable secret-sharing scheme. For storage, Enigma uses a modified distributed hash table for holding secret-shared data.
“An external blockchain is utilized as the controller of the network, manages access control, identities and serves as a tamper-proof log of events. Security deposits and fees incentivize operation, correctness and fairness of the system,” the white paper continues. “Similar to Bitcoin, Enigma removes the need for a trusted third party, enabling autonomous control of personal data. For the first time, users are able to share their data with cryptographic guarantees regarding their privacy.”
Some potential use cases include the ability to do data science and machine learning on encrypted data sets, as well as private smart contracts and ‘IoT with privacy’, Zyskind said to Bitcoin Magazine.
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