During the first Enterprise Ethereum Alliance Event, ING Bank released its Zero-Knowledge Range Proof solution. This solution should solve a big problem in the current use of blockchain by offering data privacy protection.

A zero-knowledge proof (ZKP) is a method of data security in which a first party proves an argument to a second party without revealing the information which the validity is based.

Zero-knowledge Range Proofs (ZKRPs) are based on the same principle as ZKPs, however the request for validity is based on a range, instead of a single figure. For instance, it could prove that a payment is within a certain limit, without revealing the exact height of the payment.

Until recently, regulatory reporting requirements for information transparency often clashed with data privacy requirements, according to Mariana Gomez de la Villa, global head of ING’s blockchain program. ING has now launched the ZKPR as an open source solution, allowing other developers to access and contribute to it.

Last month, JPMorgan revealed it added a zero-knowledge security layer (ZSL) to Quorom, its own private Ethereum-based blockchain. The developers of the ZSL originally used the technology to launch a privacy-focused public blockchain, called Zcash. Zcash guarantees that transactions are valid, despite invisibility of the relevant information. JPMorgan uses the technology to hide all identifiable information about a transaction, while allowing accountants to audit the transactions at the same time.