DistC: Distributed Quantum-safe Consensus for Secure IoT Data Processing

Abstract

As networks evolve into 5G and beyond, data processing in such networks will be performed in increasingly virtualized deployments. Multiple IoT data streams will need to be securely processed concurrently in such networks with automated consensus processing before being recorded in blockchain ledgers across stakeholders. This paper describes the design, implementation, and performance analysis of a quantum-safe consensus processing system for such data streams. The proposed consensus system, DistC, could be instantiated with a varying number of consensus nodes that can be selected dynamically in emerging virtualized realization of blockchain and IoT data processing systems. DistC utilizes hierarchical consensus with an intra-node consensus for validating endorsements and policies associated with transactions followed by a distributed inter-node consensus across nodes in the blockchain system. A small number of nodes are selected for inter-node consensus to enhance trust and provide fault tolerance in the system while minimizing the energy required for consensus processing in virtualized infrastructure. Performance results with respect to delay and throughput are studied for both intra-node validation and inter-node consensus for 3 different elliptic curves of increasing complexity.