Blockchain-based Solution for Trusted Reference Information

This is the plan for BC research with collaborator in the year 2020 and 2021.

Introduction

Blockchain technology (BC), also known as Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT), allows mutually distrusting parties to maintain a single truth. This truth is protected by asymmetric cryptography, digital signatures, a special structure leveraging hash-pointers, and consensus protocols. These features make the truth stored in a blockchain resilient to tampering and traceable. Moreover, most BC platforms also supports user-defined logic, allowing them to offer not just data protection but also consensus-based computation.

In the context of operations at the tactical edge, BC can act as a trustworthy infrastructure for maintain and evolving the reference information. It can also facilitate the coordination within a joint taskforce that comprises different chains of command.

Despite the advances in the developer-facing side of BC technologies, engineering and deployment of BC-based systems are still non-trivial. Any BC-based solution requires an underlying infrastructure that maintains the records and allows participants to contribute to the shared truth. The BC landscape has evolved from the early days with the emergence of “consortium” and national blockchain infrastructure BC itself has also evolved with new data structure and new consensus protocols on the horizon. The ecosystem has also expanded with side-chain, payment chain (i.e., Lightning, Raiden, etc.), oracles, and other components. The design of BC-based solutions that run on BC infrastructure presents its own array of questions regarding the placement of data and logic, as well as the scale and frequency of updates sent to the BC. Thus, employing a BC-based solution for Trusted Reference Information management requires researchers and developers to navigate a complex design space and make informed decisions while the design space itself is partially opaque and the link between decisions and their outcomes is not readily observed.

Research Problem

This project aims at designing, developing, and systematically evaluating a BC-based solution for Trusted Reference Information management. This solution aims to operate near the tactical edge, at C&C command centres close to the operation. The core question is to identify and specify the optimal designs for a BC-based solution for Trusted Reference Information. This question can be decomposed into a number of sub-questions as follow:

1. What is the design space of a BC-based solution for Trusted Reference Information, regarding both infrastructure and software architecture?
2. What are relevant quality attributes of a BC-based solution for Trusted Reference Information and how to model them?
3. What are expected qualities of a BC-based solution for Trusted Reference Information, in terms of performance and security?

Method

This project would be conducted using a mixed method, comprising both qualitative and quantitative elements. To address question 1 and 2, a systematic study and qualitative synthesis of the modern BC ecosystem and BC-related architecture literature would be conducted.

A combination of prototyping and case study would be conducted to address question 3. Specifically, the inputs from the qualitative analysis would inform the development of proof-of-concept (PoC) of BC-based solution for Trusted Reference Information. These PoC would be evaluated using synthetic benchmarks and applied to the data from the previous experiments in the context of the RePTiR program.

Proposed Deliverables and Time Frame

PoC of BC-based Trusted Reference Information Solution

This PoC aims to demonstrate the ability to maintain and update reference information in a decentralized and traceable manner. It lays a foundation for further benchmarking and experimentation with real data from the RePTiR experiments. The Ethereum would be the main technology platform. Consideration of other platforms would be subjected to the availability of resources.

This deliverable includes source code and documentation of the PoC.

Expected Delivery Date: December 2020

Case Study: Trusted Reference Information Evolution based on Cryptography and Consensus with Blockchain

This deliverable includes a technical report on the detailed design of the BC-based Trusted Reference Information solution and a study of its quality attributes based on the real data from the RePTiR experiments.

Expected Delivery Date: May 2021

BC Landscape and Design Techniques for Trusted Tactical Information management

This deliverable includes a technical report that answers the questions on design options, ecosystem, and quality attributes of the BC-based solution. The emphasis would be on options, elements, and metrics that facilitate the development of BC-based solution for mission data to support decision making at the edge.

Expected Delivery Date: February 2021