PriorMark
IP Protection
Technology
A detailed look at the tools and protocols behind PriorMark — why each was chosen and what role it plays in making your claim tamper-proof and independently verifiable.
Jump to section
One-way content fingerprint
Authenticated symmetric encryption
Encrypted cloud storage
On-chain timestamp records
Independent Verification
↑ LegendEvery claim on PriorMark can be verified without involving us at all.
1. Locate the transaction on HashScan using your topic ID and sequence number.
2. Read the raw message — it contains your SHA-3/512 hash and submission metadata.
3. Run SHA-3/512 on your original content locally.
4. If the hashes match, the content is authentic and the ledger timestamp is your priority date.
No PriorMark account, no login, no trust in us required. The Hedera Mirror Node API and HashScan are public infrastructure operated independently of this platform.
Content Fingerprinting — SHA-3/512
↑ LegendOne-way cryptographic hash
Before anything leaves your session, your idea title, description, and any uploaded documents are individually hashed using SHA-3/512 (Keccak-512). The result is a fixed-length 512-bit fingerprint — any change to the content, even a single character, produces a completely different hash.
SHA-3 is the current NIST standard hash function, standardized in 2015. The 512-bit variant provides stronger collision resistance and greater margin against future cryptanalysis than the more common 256-bit variant.
Why not SHA-256? SHA-256 (used by Bitcoin) is based on the Merkle–Damgård construction. SHA-3 uses a different sponge construction — any vulnerability discovered in SHA-2 would not affect SHA-3. For long-lived records, this independence matters.
Quantum: Grover's algorithm theoretically halves the effective bit strength of a hash function on a quantum computer — reducing SHA-3/512 to ~256-bit effective security. 256-bit remains computationally infeasible even with large-scale quantum hardware.
Content Encryption — AES-256-GCM
↑ LegendSymmetric authenticated encryption
Your description is never sent in plaintext — on Proof-Only it never leaves your browser, and on Proof + Storage it is encrypted with AES-256-GCM before upload. AES-256 is the global standard for symmetric encryption — used by governments, banks, and militaries worldwide.
GCM (Galois/Counter Mode) adds authentication: each encrypted payload carries a 128-bit authentication tag. If anyone modifies the encrypted data in storage, decryption fails — silent corruption is not possible.
Each encryption uses a randomly generated 96-bit initialization vector (IV), so encrypting the same content twice produces completely different ciphertext — preventing pattern analysis across files.
Quantum: Grover's algorithm reduces AES-256's effective key strength to ~128-bit. 128-bit remains secure for the foreseeable future. We monitor NIST's post-quantum standards (ML-KEM) for a future migration path.
Secure Cloud Storage
↑ LegendOn the Proof + Storage tier, encrypted content is stored in secure, redundant cloud infrastructure. Files are encrypted client-side with AES-256-GCM before upload — only you hold the key. Storage handles content retrieval; it is never the proof mechanism.
Important: your proof of claim lives on the Hedera ledger as a SHA-3/512 hash. That record is permanent and independent of cloud storage. Your claim timestamp and content fingerprint remain on Hedera — verifiable forever with only your original files and a HashScan link.
The ledger layer for PriorMark claims — providing the public timestamp record that establishes your priority date. Hedera's hashgraph consensus is energy-efficient and carbon-negative: each transaction consumes roughly 0.000003 kWh, and Hedera purchases carbon offsets exceeding its operational footprint.
Hedera Consensus Service (HCS)
Timestamp record
When you submit a claim, a message containing your content's SHA-3/512 fingerprint and submission metadata is written to a public HCS topic. Hedera's network of independent nodes reaches consensus on the exact order and timestamp of every message — no single party controls it.
HCS is purpose-built for ordered, high-throughput messaging — not general computation. Finality in seconds, fractions of a cent per message, publicly auditable on HashScan.
Hedera provides deterministic finality with no forks, consistently low fees, and governance by a council of globally recognized organizations — ensuring long-term stability and continuity.
HashScan — hashscan.io
Public ledger viewer
HashScan is the public explorer for the Hedera network, operated by Swirlds Labs. It provides a human-readable interface to browse every transaction and topic message on Hedera — including every PriorMark claim.
Every claim submitted on PriorMark links directly to its HashScan record — the raw HCS message containing the content fingerprint and timestamp, visible to anyone without an account.
HashScan is independent public infrastructure. Even if PriorMark were unavailable, your claim record would remain browsable on HashScan and queryable via the Hedera Mirror Node API.
Quantum: HCS uses the ED25519 signature scheme — more quantum-resistant than RSA or ECDSA used by most blockchains. Hedera monitors NIST's post-quantum standards and has a protocol-level migration path that would not require re-submission of existing claims.
Quantum Resistance — Full Stack
↑ LegendPriorMark is designed for quantum resilience across every layer. Records submitted today are built to remain verifiable and tamper-proof as quantum computing advances.
Ledger (HCS): ED25519 signatures — more quantum-resistant than RSA or ECDSA. Hedera has a protocol-level migration path to NIST post-quantum standards (ML-DSA, SLH-DSA) without requiring re-submission of existing claims.
Hash (SHA-3/512): Grover's algorithm halves effective hash strength — reducing SHA-3/512 to ~256-bit effective security. 256-bit is computationally infeasible to break even with large-scale quantum hardware.
Encryption (AES-256-GCM): Reduced to ~128-bit effective security under Grover's algorithm. 128-bit remains secure for the foreseeable future. We monitor NIST's ML-KEM standard for a future migration path.
NIST finalized its first post-quantum cryptography standards in 2024. We treat quantum migration as a planned evolution, not an emergency — and the architecture is designed to accommodate it without invalidating existing claims.