To answer this question, let’s break it down into 3 parts-

a) How hashing works: In simple terms, hashing means taking an input string of any length (data from your document) and giving out an output of a fixed length. This output string is sent to the blockchain. This is a critical function because this property of hashing leads to one of the greatest qualities of the blockchain, which is, its immutability. That means, if someone makes even a slight change in your input, the hash will no longer match with the one initially generated, protecting you against fraudulent tampering of your document.

b) Digitising the document: Since blockchain itself is not efficient to store digital records (considering the size of digital records and excessive cost of such transactions), VeriDoc Global has come up with a mechanism to store digital documents in client’s secured server after the data from the document is added to the blockchain. In simple terms, the digitisation of the document involves, extracting data from the document, storing the document as data on the blockchain and recording the transaction into a unique QR code which is then added on the original document issued by the issuer. This new document is converted into a pdf and is stored locally on client’s server.

This is done by cryptographically linking the data extracted from your documentand converting it into a hash which also records the destination of the original source file. VeriDoc Global is responsible for creating that unique hashand storing it on a Blockchain network like Ethereum.This hash is then embedded into a unique QR code. By scanning this QR code,anyone can uniquely identify the content of the original document created by the issuer, which isused to verify your data’s integrity and timestamp.

c) Storing encrypted documents on Client’s server and data on the blockchain: Once the user creates a document using their VDG account, the document data will be sent to the blockchain (in the form of hash). Once the transaction containing the hash is complete, the hash containing information of the document will be embedded into a QR code. This document will be stored locally on the client’s secured server. This will be used as a three-step verification as VeriDoc Global will fetch the original document in a preview mode on the verification page that shows up when the user scans the QR code present on the document. Therefore, from the verification screen, user can visually compare the contents of the document and can also verify the data integrity on the blockchain explorer.

Implementation costs differ from client to client. In saying that, to integrate VeriDoc Global as a plugin into a client’s existing server, VeriDoc Global will work as an API to fetch information from client’s domain. To do this, the API will conduct transactions on VeriDoc Global server on behalf of client. This will require our development team to calculate the effort and number of hours required in integrating VeriDoc Global services into client’s existing domain. Thus, the cost of implementation will be directly proportional to the hours of work required for integration.

Secondly, each implementation will require one or more template designs dedicated for each document type that the user wants to create documents for. This will also form part of implementation cost.

Also, VDG tokens are used to pay for transactions and to send data to the blockchain. The utility token covers the fees that are associated with creating a new record, such as gas on the Ethereum blockchain.In addition to using gas to perform computations, gas is also used to pay miners who provide their resources to the Ethereum blockchain, in the form of a transaction fee.

Gas is a special unit that quantifies the amount of work needed to perform actions on the Ethereum blockchain. Much like a car which requires a certain amount of gas to get from Point A to Point B, actions performed on the Ethereum network require a certain amount of gas to complete.

In simple terms, VeriDoc Global verifies each step in the supply chain by registering a “digital handshake”, that marks exactly when and where the goods have changed hands. Thus, a record of entire history including all transfer documents can be added on the same QR for ease of access and supply chain tracking.

The QR present on all VeriDoc Global generated documents can be access-level controlled. In which case, when a user scans the QR code they will only be able to see the information for which they have access to. To do so, the user will have to scan the access level-protected QR code using our VeriDoc QR Scanner Mobile Application. The application will be linked to user’s account using one-time password (OTP) mechanism and will authenticate each scan to ensure only users with certain access levels are given access to the different amount of information linked to the QR code. If the person is not allowed access through their application, then he/she will be unable to see information from the encrypted document.

One-Time Password (OTP) is a technological mechanism through which a single-use password is generated and sent to the registered mobile number for the user to access the application. It is also known as two-factor authentication.

Metadata is information about an object or resource that describes characteristics such as content, quality, format, location and contact information.Metadata can be used to instantly identify and validate the important information such as document holder name, any reference numbers or values from the document upon scanning.

Metadata for each document is taken as strings of information from the document describing the characteristics of that document and are available to be displayed on the verify screen when the user scans the QR code present on the document.

Our clients have an option to choose between a two-step verification available for the metadata fields. One on verify screen and other on blockchain explorer where certain fields of the data from the document are displayed in the form of metadata in the input field. This comes with an extra cost as sending metadata to the blockchain along with the unique hash of the entire document costs more gas.

A Decentralized Application (DApp) is very similar to a traditional web application. The front end uses the same technology to render the page. The one critical difference is that instead of an API connecting to a database, there is a smart contract connecting to a blockchain.

Utility tokens are services or units of services that can be purchased. They don’t represent a share of the business. They can be compared to API keys, used to access a service.

ERC20 is a guide of rules and regulations that help create a blueprint for Ethereum based smart contracts to create tokens. The VDG token is an ERC20 digital cryptographic utility token issued by VeriDoc Global. VDG is necessary to pay for transaction costs on the blockchain network when protecting an original document.

VDG token is implemented on the application-level on top of Ethereum blockchain. It is integrated within the application and is part of the application incentive mechanism for nodes and/or users. VDG token adheres to the ERC20 token standard ofhow to access information, transfer assets, and fire off events.

Security is a critical responsibility for VeriDoc, and represents an investment that customers using our services can count on.We build security into VeriDoc products and cloud services from the ground up, using Microsoft’s fundamentals starting with the Security Development Lifecycle, a process that Microsoft has made publicly available since 2004. This mandatory development process embeds security requirements into the entire software lifecycle, from planning through deployment.

In addition, our clients have access to information about the wide range of technologies we use to help secure your data, including identity and access management, expanded use of encryption and threat management.

VDG is used to pay for transactions and to send data to the blockchain. The utility token covers the fees that are associated with creating a new record, such as gas on the Ethereum blockchain.

Gas is a special unit that quantifies the amount of work needed to perform actions on the Ethereum blockchain. Much like a car which requires a certain amount of gas to get from Point A to Point B, actions performed on the Ethereum network require a certain amount of gas to complete.

In addition to using gas to perform computations, gas is also used to pay miners who provide their resources to the Ethereum blockchain, in the form of a transaction fee.

VeriDoc Global is a DApp and was never intended for just one single blockchain. Limiting payments to ETH would mean that when VeriDoc Global is available on other blockchains, document issuers would need to pay for fees in multiple cryptocurrencies.

For example, a document issuer wants to create a document hash on the Ethereum, Bitcoin, Stellar Lumens, EOS and Cardano networks. Without a VDG token to cover all the transaction fees across the five networks, the document issuer would need to pay VeriDoc Global using five different cryptocurrencies.