Legal Validity of Blockchain Notarization and Certain Date

In an increasingly digital world, establishing when a document, contract, or intellectual work was created is a crucial legal requirement. Traditionally, obtaining a "certain date" (data certa) required resorting to public registries, postal services, or trusted third parties (TSAs). Today, cryptographic timestamping on public ledgers like the Bitcoin blockchain represents an alternative, math-based approach.

But does blockchain notarization have legal validity? How does it stand against national and international regulations? This guide provides an in-depth analysis of the legal framework surrounding blockchain timestamping under European regulations and Italian laws.

1. The European Framework: The eIDAS Regulation

At the European Union level, the reference legislation is the eIDAS Regulation (Regulation EU No 910/2014), which establishes rules for electronic trust services, including electronic timestamps.

The regulation distinguishes between two types of electronic timestamps:

• Qualified Electronic Time Stamps (QTS): Issued by accredited Certification Authorities (Qualified Trust Service Providers, like InfoCert or Aruba). They enjoy the automatic presumption of the accuracy of the date/time and the integrity of the data (Art. 41, paragraph 2).
• Non-Qualified Electronic Time Stamps: Issued by any other technology or provider, including blockchain notarization.

This means that a blockchain timestamp cannot be discarded by a court simply because it is digital or because it does not come from a traditional central certifier. It is fully admissible as evidence in legal proceedings. Its reliability and evidentiary value must be evaluated by the judge, who will assess the technical security of the underlying technology.

2. The Italian Legal Framework: Law 12/2019

Italy was one of the first countries in the world to introduce specific legislation regarding the legal effects of blockchain technologies.

Decree-Law no. 135/2018 (converted into Law no. 12/2019) introduced Article 8-ter into the Italian legal framework, which defines "technologies based on distributed ledgers" and regulates their legal value.

Therefore, under Italian law, registering the cryptographic footprint of a document on a blockchain is officially recognized as an electronic timestamp. In court, it constitutes a written document that can be freely evaluated by a judge to determine its reliability.

3. How it Works: Security and Evidentiary Strength of Bitcoin

To understand why a blockchain timestamp is so legally robust, we must look at the technology behind it. When you notarize a file on Verifybit:

1. Verifybit does not store or upload your original document. Hashing (calculating the file's unique SHA-256 fingerprint) is computed, and the original file is discarded immediately from the server memory to protect your privacy.
2. The file's cryptographic hash is batched with other hashes using the open-source OpenTimestamps protocol and registered on the Bitcoin blockchain.
3. You receive a receipt file (with the .ots extension) which contains the mathematical path connecting your file's hash to the specific Bitcoin block.

Because the Bitcoin blockchain is secured by the highest computational power (hash-rate) in the world, once a block is confirmed, it is computationally impossible to rewrite its history. This gives the blockchain timestamp an unprecedented degree of security, making it mathematically certain and impossible to forge.

4. Comparison: Blockchain vs. Traditional Certified Timestamps

While a Qualified Electronic Timestamp (QTS) enjoys the automatic presumption of accuracy, it has limitations:

• Cost and expiration: Traditional timestamps cost money for each stamp and rely on certificates that expire (usually after 10–20 years). Once the certificate of the authority expires, verifying the timestamp requires complex procedures.
• Centralization: You rely on the trust of the authority. If they go out of business or modify their logs, the proof can be contested.

Blockchain Notarization (via OpenTimestamps):

• Neutral and decentralized: Verification does not depend on Verifybit, nor on any centralized company or government. It depends only on the public Bitcoin network.
• Permanent: Once registered, it is valid forever. The proof does not expire, and you can verify it directly against the Bitcoin blockchain indefinitely.
• Cost-effective: OpenTimestamps batching makes the notarization free on Verifybit.

Summary of Legal Status

In conclusion, a blockchain notarization is a non-qualified electronic timestamp. It is legally admissible as evidence in European courts (eIDAS Art. 41) and produces the legal effects of an electronic timestamp in Italy (L. 12/2019). While a qualified timestamp has the automatic presumption of accuracy, a blockchain timestamp offers a mathematically unbreakable proof of existence that you can present to any judge to assert the integrity and timestamp of your digital assets.