Program Commitment

Definition ∞ Program Commitment, in cryptography, refers to a method where a party commits to a specific computational program or algorithm without revealing its full details immediately. Later, the party can disclose the program and prove that the disclosed program is indeed the one they committed to earlier. This technique ensures that a party cannot alter the program after making an initial declaration. It provides a mechanism for verifiable, deferred disclosure of computational logic.
Context ∞ Program commitment is a foundational concept in constructing advanced cryptographic protocols, particularly those supporting verifiable computation and zero-knowledge proofs. News often discusses its application in securing off-chain computations or in enabling private smart contract execution. The integrity offered by program commitment is vital for ensuring fairness and trust in decentralized systems where parties might have incentives to cheat. Its reliability underpins the security of many cutting-edge blockchain technologies.