Electronic Regulation of Data Sharing and Processing Using Smart Ledger Technologies for Supply-Chain Security

Abstract

Traditional centralised data storage and processing solutions manifest limitations with regards to overall operational cost and the security and auditability of data. One of the biggest issues with existing solutions is the difficulty of keeping track of who has had access to the data and how the data may have changed over its lifetime; while providing a secure and easyto-use mechanism to share the data between different users. The ability to electronically regulate data sharing within and across different organisational entities in the supply-chain (SC), is an open issue, that is only addressed partially by existing legal and regulatory compliance frameworks. In this work, we present Cydon, a decentralised data management platform that executes bespoke distributed applications utilising a novel search and retrieve algorithm leveraging metadata attributes. Cydon utilises a smart distributed ledger to offer an immutable audit trail and transaction history for all different levels of data access and modification within a SC and for all data flows within the environment. Results suggest that Cydon provides authorised and fast access to secure distributed data, avoids single points of failure by securely distributing encrypted data across different nodes while maintains an "always-on" chain of custody.

Distributed Ledger Technologies in Supply Chain Security Management: A Comprehensive Survey

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“…Epiphaniou et al [5] conducted a detailed threat analysis of their framework. They stated that CIA assurance is an important security aspect of the system.…”

“…The security and privacy of information across the entire SC networks are necessary for ensuring the supply of authentic quality goods and services, protection of trade and sensitive information, intellectual properties, copyrights, brand reputation, fraud prevention and anti-counterfeit measures. Zhang et al [18], Salman et al [35], Saini et al [44], Nalavade et al [20] and Epiphaniou et al [5] explain that with astronomical amount of data being produced and the speed of technological advancement, it is imperative to afford the maximum information security to the SC data in order to ensure their CIA at all times. Sudhan et al [83] state that "the unique nature of BC ensures the CIA of data stored and accessed in a decentralized manner".…”

“…BC is a cryptographically secure decentralized database that generates a digital log of trusted and immutable transactions which are encapsulated into blocks, a process known as mining, and can be shared across either a public or a private network. According to Bellini et al [4], and Epiphaniou et al [5], all the blocks are timestamped, have their own unique identities, achieved through the hash of the Merkle tree, and the information from the previous block, connecting the blocks. Fig.…”

“…Security threats to the SC vary from the physical to cyber threats. To manage these threats, SCM must adhere to the three core fundamental security principles governing the security and assurance of information and systems, the CIA triad, confidentiality, integrity and availability [19], [20], [5]. Achieving CIA in the SC will require risk management [21], security compliance, including compliance with standards [22], cyber resilience [9] and security frameworks and solutions [23].…”