Zero-knowledge proofs are a class of cryptographic protocol that confirms knowledge without revealing excess data, with applications in cybersecurity, financial transactions, and blockchain technology.
zk-SNARK, a non-interactive zero-knowledge protocol was published in January 2012 by Nir Bitansky, Ran Canetti, Alessandro Chiesa and Erin Tromer. zk-SNARKzk-SNARK provided the computational framework for the Zcash blockchain protocol, showing capabilities of combining ZKP protocols to cryptocurrency.