Systems and methods for message transmission and retrieval using blockchain

Abstract

Systems and methods for message transfer and retrieval are provided. According to some aspects, message information is received from a sender, and a message can be created based on the received message information. A hash of the message and transaction information related to the message can be generated and provided to a current block in a blockchain. The message is transferred or otherwise provided to a receiver, and upon receipt and validation of authentication information from the receiver, access to the received message is provided to the receiver. A hash of the received message and additional transaction information related to the received message is generated and provided to a current block in the blockchain. Other aspects also are provided.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method for secure message transfer between a plurality of participants, comprising:
 generating a message from a first participant of the plurality of participants;   hashing the message and generating transaction information related to the message;   providing the transaction information and the hash of the message to one or more blocks in a blockchain;   providing access to the message by a device managed by a second participant of the plurality of participants;   requesting authentication information from the second participant;   providing access to the message on the second device upon receipt and validation of the authentication information;   hashing the accessed message and generating additional transaction information related to the accessed message;   providing the hash of the accessed message and the additional transaction information to one or more blocks in the blockchain; and   displaying information provided in the blockchain to show a transaction history for the message.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising notifying the second participant that the message has been transferred to the second device. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the message comprises an audio message, a visual message, a textual message, or combinations thereof. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the hashing of the message includes applying a hash function to electronic data of the message. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 4 , wherein the hash function comprises a SHA256 or a RIPEMD function. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the transaction information includes a transaction identifier, a message type, a participant identifier, a status, time information related to the message, or combinations thereof. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the additional transaction information includes a transaction identifier, a message type, a participant identifier, a status, time information related to the received message, or combinations thereof. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the authentication information comprises multifactor authentication information. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 9 , wherein the authentication information includes a crypto key provided to the second participant. 
     
     
         10 . A system for secure message transfer between a plurality of participants, comprising:
 one or more processors; and   one or more non-transitory computer readable storage mediums having instructions stored therein, the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the system to:
 generate a message from a first participant of the plurality of participants; 
 hash the message and generate transaction information related to the message; 
 provide the transaction information and the hash of the message to one or more blocks in a blockchain; 
 provide access to the message by a device managed by a second participant of the plurality of participants; 
 receive authentication information from the second participant, 
 provide access to the message on the second device upon validation of the authentication information; 
 hash the accessed message and generate additional transaction information related to the accessed message; 
 provide the hash of the accessed message and the additional transaction information to one or more blocks in the blockchain; and 
 display information provided in the blockchain on the first or second device to show a transaction history for the message. 
   
     
     
         11 . The system of  claim 10 , wherein the system notifies the second user that the message is available for access on the device. 
     
     
         12 . The system of  claim 10 , wherein the message comprises an audio message, a visual message, or a textual message. 
     
     
         13 . The system of  claim 10 , wherein the system applies a hash function to electronic data of the message to hash the message. 
     
     
         14 . The system of  claim 13 , wherein the hash function comprises a SHA256 or a RIPEMD function. 
     
     
         15 . The system of  claim 10 , wherein the transaction information includes a transaction identifier, a message type, a participant identifier, a status, time information related to the message, or combinations thereof. 
     
     
         16 . The system of  claim 10 , wherein the additional transaction information includes a transaction identifier, a message type, a participant identifier, a status, time information related to the received message, or combinations thereof. 
     
     
         17 . The system of  claim 10 , wherein the authentication information comprises multifactor authentication information.