A Novel Approach for Providing Client-Verifiable and Efficient Access to Private Smart Contracts

Alexander Köberl, Holger Bock, Christian Steger

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference paperpeer-review

Abstract

Distributed Ledger Technology is a powerful tool to support direct collaboration between organisations, without requiring full trust into a centralised infrastructure. By defining a program logic and access policies with smart contracts, all interactions are verified in the distributed network and the history of the data is recorded on the ledger. Blockchain implementations targeting enterprise use cases also provide means for private transactions, where the content of the transaction is only readable by authorized participants. Direct access to the ledger requires a node with reliable connection to the network and sufficient computational resources, which usually cannot be fulfilled with lightweight Internet of Things devices and mobile applications. We present an advanced system for accessing an enterprise Blockchain through dedicated gateway nodes, while preserving the functionality of private transactions. A hybrid approach is used to allow computation- and storage restricted clients to send private transactions through a central gateway, and use Light Ethereum Subprotocol to verify the data integrity based on proofs from distributed nodes. To increase the client-side security level, we introduce a dedicated Hardware Security Module for key management and efficient execution of the cryptographic primitives. A proof-of-concept implementation, using the Quorum Blockchain client and an extension for the Tessera transaction manager, validates the feasibility of the approach and can be used for further research in this field.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publication5th IEEE Conference on Dependable and Secure Computing, DSC 2022 and SECSOC 2022 Workshop, PASS4IoT 2022 Workshop SICSA International Paper/Poster Competition in Cybersecurity
PublisherInstitute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
Number of pages8
ISBN (Electronic)9781665421416
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2022
Event5th IEEE Conference on Dependable and Secure Computing: DSC 2022 - Edinburgh, United Kingdom
Duration: 22 Jun 202224 Jun 2022

Conference

Conference5th IEEE Conference on Dependable and Secure Computing
Abbreviated titleDSC 2022
Country/TerritoryUnited Kingdom
CityEdinburgh
Period22/06/2224/06/22

Keywords

  • Blockchain
  • Blockchain Gateway
  • Light Ethereum Subprotocol
  • Privacy
  • Quorum
  • Smart Contract

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Computer Networks and Communications
  • Information Systems and Management
  • Safety, Risk, Reliability and Quality

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