Methods and apparatus for recording a change of authorization state of one or more authorization agents

1. A method of recording a change of authorization state of one or more authorization agents, the method comprising:

establishing a copy of a blockchain ledger at each of a plurality of blockchain nodes, wherein each of the blockchain nodes is associated with a different controlling entity;

providing a public key/private key pair for a first of the blockchain nodes, the private key being for storage in, or in a manner accessible to, a communication device associated with a first controlling entity;

receiving, from the communication device, a first message comprising:

first data indicative of a change of authorization state of a first authorization agent associated with the first controlling entity, the first data being encrypted; and

a digital signature based on the blockchain ledger and the private key;

authenticating the first message using the public key;

adding a block to the blockchain ledger based on the first message to generate a new blockchain ledger that records the change of authorization state of the first authorization agent; and

outputting a copy of the new blockchain ledger for distribution to another blockchain node of the plurality of blockchain nodes.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the digital signature comprises an output of a hash function applied to the blockchain ledger using the private key.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the digital signature comprises an output of a hash function applied to a combination of the first data and the blockchain ledger using the private key.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first data is encrypted using the private key.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first message comprises time or indexing data.

6. The method of claim 5 , wherein the digital signature comprises an output of a hash function applied to the time or indexing data using the private key.

7. A method of enabling recording of a change of authorization state of an authorization agent associated with a controlling entity, the method comprising, in a communication device:

accepting input regarding a change of authorization state of a first authorization agent associated with a controlling entity;

generating first data indicative of the change of authorization state, the first data being encrypted;

generating a digital signature based on a blockchain ledger and a private key, the blockchain ledger being hosted on a plurality of blockchain nodes, at least one of which is associated with the controlling entity and accessible to the communication device; and

transmitting a first message to the accessible blockchain node, the first message comprising the first data and the digital signature, the first message instructing the accessible blockchain node to add a block to the blockchain ledger based on the first message to generate a new blockchain ledger that records the change of authorization state of the first authorization agent.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein the digital signature comprises an output of a hash function applied to the blockchain ledger using the private key.

9. The method of claim 7 , wherein the digital signature comprises an output of a hash function applied to a combination of the first data and the blockchain ledger using the private key.

10. The method of claim 7 , wherein the first data is encrypted using the private key.

11. The method of claim 7 , wherein the first message comprises time or indexing data.

12. The method of claim 11 , wherein the digital signature comprises an output of a hash function applied to the time or indexing data using the private key.

13. A first blockchain node, the first blockchain node being one of a plurality of blockchain nodes, each blockchain node storing a copy of a block chain ledger and each blockchain node being associated with a different controlling entity and a public key/private key pair, the first blockchain node comprising:

a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having instructions recorded thereon, which, when executed, configure the first blockchain node to record a change of authorization state of one or more authorization agents by:

receiving, from a communication device storing a private key or capable of accessing the private key, a first message comprising:

first data indicative of a change of authorization state of a first authorization agent associated with a first controlling entity, the first data being encrypted; and

a digital signature based on the blockchain ledger and the private key;

authenticating the first message using the public key;

adding a block to the blockchain ledger based on the first message to generate a new blockchain ledger that records the change of authorization state of the first authorization agent; and

outputting a copy of the new blockchain ledger for distribution to another blockchain node of the plurality of blockchain nodes.

14. The first blockchain node of claim 13 , wherein the digital signature comprises an output of a hash function applied to the blockchain ledger using the private key.

15. The first blockchain node of claim 13 , wherein the digital signature comprises an output of a hash function applied to a combination of the first data and the blockchain ledger using the private key.

16. The first blockchain node of claim 13 , wherein the first data is encrypted using the private key.

17. The first blockchain node of claim 13 , wherein the first message comprises time or indexing data.

18. The first blockchain node of claim 17 , wherein the digital signature comprises an output of a hash function applied to the time or indexing data using the private key.

19. A communication device for enabling recording of a change of an authorization agent associated with a controlling entity, the communication device comprising:

a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having instructions recorded thereon, which, when executed, cause the communication device to:

accept input regarding a change of authorization state of a first authorization agent associated with a controlling entity;

generate first data indicative of the change of authorization state, the first data being encrypted;

generate a digital signature based on a blockchain ledger and a private key, the blockchain ledger being hosted on a plurality of blockchain nodes, at least one of which is associated with the controlling entity and accessible to the communication device; and

transmit a first message to the accessible blockchain node, the first message comprising the first data and the digital signature, the first message instructing the accessible blockchain node to add a block to the blockchain ledger based on the first message to generate a new blockchain ledger that records the change of authorization state of the first authorization agent.

20. The communication device of claim 19 , wherein the digital signature comprises an output of a hash function applied to the blockchain ledger using the private key.

21. The communication device of claim 19 , wherein the digital signature comprises an output of a hash function applied to a combination of the first data and the blockchain ledger using the private key.

22. The communication device of claim 19 , wherein the first data is encrypted using the private key.

23. The communication device of claim 19 , wherein the first message comprises time or indexing data.

24. The communication device of claim 23 , wherein the digital signature comprises an output of a hash function applied to the time or indexing data using the private key.