Blockchain-Based PKI for Crowdsourced IoT Sensor Information

Abstract

The Internet of Things is progressively getting broader, evolving its scope while creating new markets and adding more to the existing ones. However, both generation and analysis of large amounts of data, which are integral to this concept, may require the proper protection and privacy-awareness of some sensitive information. In order to control the access to this data, allowing devices to verify the reliability of their own interactions with other endpoints of the network is a crucial step to ensure this required safeness. Through the implementation of a blockchain-based Public Key Infrastructure connected to the Keybase platform, it is possible to achieve a simple protocol that binds devices' public keys to their owner accounts, which are respectively supported by identity proofs. The records of this blockchain represent digital signatures performed by this Keybase users on their respective devices' public keys, claiming their ownership. Resorting to this distributed and decentralized PKI, any device is able to autonomously verify the entity in control of a certain node of the network and prevent future interactions with unverified parties.

A Survey on Leveraging Blockchain for IoT Security

“…He et al [79] introduce an Over The Air (OTA) Blockchain-based firmware update that addresses MITM and Denial of service attacks, but a wide range of IoT devices must be taken into consideration for testing. To connect identities to public keys, Pinto et al [80] introduced a Public Key Infrastructure based on Blockchain connected with Keybase platform.…”

A Blockchain-Based Spatial Crowdsourcing System for Spatial Information Collection Using a Reward Distribution

“…Implementing CES on a large scale requires a secure framework, and blockchain and smart contracts are good choices in this area [ 74 ]. With the advent of the internet of things, the use of massive sensors to collect information and establish secure communication between sensors has employed the blockchain in this area [ 75 ]. Crowdsourcing is an appropriate solution for sharing knowledge that can solve problems faster and cheaper [ 76 ].…”