ITEMInformation Transmission Evolution MapA visual history of human information
Person

W. Scott Stornetta

W. Scott Stornetta co-developed cryptographic methods for time-stamping digital documents so their existence and later modification could be checked.

Period
1991
Known for
Cryptographic document time-stamping
Historical contribution

What Stornetta contributed

With Stuart Haber, he described linked hash-based records and publication mechanisms that made retrospective alteration evident.

Why it mattered

The work helped establish technical foundations for digital provenance and influenced later blockchain architectures.

Connected topics

Where this fits in ITEM

Digital Provenance and Authenticity Systems
Evidence

Sources and further reading

  1. How to Time-Stamp a Digital Document

    Stuart Haber, W. Scott Stornetta · 1991

    Open source ↗