Blockchain Consensus Mechanisms: Proof of Work, Proof of Stake, and Hybrid Mechanisms

Every computer network needs a way to ensure that all connected devices are in agreement about the state of the network: whether data is valid, where and how it should be sorted, etc. For centralised networks, reaching this consensus is easy: the central server dictates the correct state of the network to all other connected devices. For decentralised networks, though, reaching consensus is more challenging. Because there’s no central authority, decentralised networks need a secure alternative method of reaching consensus.