In a decentralized network, such as a blockchain, data is redundantly stored and monitored by multiple nodes, instead of on a private server. Additionally, data is distributed amongst a web of individual machines with different owners that perform continuous consensus on the validity of changes to its state. In a decentralized network, mechanisms exist to reward nodes that align themselves with network consensus and penalize those which do not. See Proof of Stake for more information about OMG Network's enforcement mechanisms. Centralized networks require trust in a central party, which is opaque and gated. Centralized databases are vulnerable to attack because they present a single point of entry for bad actors looking to steal or manipulate data. Decentralized networks are transparent. Every state change of such networks (i.e. every balance and every transaction) is stored on a shared ledger that can be viewed by anyone or is obscured in a way that makes voluntary provable traceability possible where necessary. Thus, there is no need to trust the word of a central authority.