A transformative shift toward blockchain‐basedIoTenvironments: Consensus, smart contracts, and future directions

Abstract

Recently, Internet‐of‐Things (IoT) based applications have shifted from centralized infrastructures to decentralized ecosystems, owing to user data's security and privacy limitations. The shift has opened new doors for intruders to launch distributed attacks in diverse IoT scenarios that jeopardize the application environments. Moreover, as heterogeneous and autonomous networks communicate, the attacks intensify, which justifies the requirement of trust as a key policy. Recently, blockchain‐based IoT solutions have been proposed that address trust limitations by maintaining data consistency, immutability, and chronology in IoT environments. However, IoT ecosystems are resource‐constrained and have low bandwidth and finite computing power of sensor nodes. Thus, the inclusion of blockchain requires an effective policy design regarding consensus and smart contract environments in heterogeneous IoT applications. Recent studies have presented blockchain as a potential solution in IoT, but an effective view of consensus and smart contract design to meet the end application requirements is an open problem. Motivated by the same, the survey presents the integration of suitable low‐powered consensus protocols and smart contract design to assess and validate the blockchain‐IoT ecosystems. We present blockchain‐IoT's emerging communication and security aspects with performance issues of consensus protocols, interoperability, and implementation platforms. A case study of a smart contract‐based blockchain‐driven ecosystem is presented with a comparative analysis of mining cost and latency, which shows its suitability in real‐world setups. We also highlight attacks on blockchain IoT, open issues, potential findings, and future directions. The survey intends to drive novel solutions for future consensus and safe, smart contract designs to support applicative IoT ecosystems.

Blockchain-enabled Data Governance Framework for Enhancing Security and Efficiency in Multi-Cloud Environments through Ethereum, IPFS, and Cloud Infrastructure Integration

“…Current research explores the integration of blockchain into big data processing systems and multi-cloud architectures, aiming to establish trust and facilitate verifiable data transactions [12]. Interoperability challenges arise due to diverse protocols and standards across different blockchain platforms and cloud environments [13].…”

Explainable AI for Industry 5.0: Vision, Architecture, and Potential Directions

“…It is safe because it uses cryptographic hashes conveniently stored on a blockchain. Nonetheless, IPFS does not allow users to transfer files to specific individuals [82]. The manufacturer, supplier, logistics, and production departments can use the model's outcome from here.…”

A Comparative Examination of Network and Contract-Based Blockchain Storage Solutions for Decentralized Applications

“…However, there is no built-in incentivization mechanism in IPFS that guarantees the redundancy and availability of files stored on the network. Content is available only for as long as it is maintained by at least one online and discoverable network participant [20]. Although files are not actively replicated, they can be "pinned" to prevent their deletion by nodes.…”

“…In this approach, the blockchain layer manages the storing, verifying, updating and other operations about files on the network through smart contracts between clients and miners (a contract-based DSN). 2) Blockchain directly stores and maintains file data in blocks (a network-based DSN), and the content stored inherits all the security and availability properties from the underlying blockchain system [20]. The following sections discuss and compare one of the most widely used and representative solutions of each of the two approaches.…”