Immutable Logs

Full Title or Meme

Data that cannot be changed, but can be appended.

Context

Immutable data is a piece of information in a database that cannot be deleted or modified. Immutable data is highly useful for auditing and debugging. A real-life example of immutable data is someone’s medical records. Over the years, a person might have sought treatment for different ailments. The medical record consists of various prescriptions, procedures, and test reports. These data files are immutable. For example, when a person receives a new medical prescription, their old prescription should not be overwritten. Instead, the database should append the new data to the existing one. Historical medical data is a classic example of immutable data.

Immutable logs are log files protected from tampering and erroneous insertion 2. They are highly useful for auditing and debugging purposes. Depending on the implementation, the files can have additional protections from poisoning and fictional recreation/forgery 2. Secure logs are an event logging technology called immutable logs. This technology implements cryptographic measures to preserve the integrity and authenticity of logs, without compromising the performance of the system 3. An immutable audit log is a tamper-resistant recording of how a system has been used 4.