Mohammad Shahab Sepehri, Asal Mehradfar, Mahdi Soltanolkotabi, Salman Avestimehr
Predicting Bitcoin price remains a challenging problem due to the high volatility and complex non-linear dynamics of cryptocurrency markets. Traditional time-series models, such as ARIMA and GARCH, and recurrent neural networks, like LSTMs, have been widely applied to this task but struggle to capture the regime shifts and long-range dependencies inherent in the data. In this work, we propose CryptoMamba, a novel Mamba-based State Space Model (SSM) architecture designed to effectively capture long-range dependencies in financial time-series data. Our experiments show that CryptoMamba not only provides more accurate predictions but also offers enhanced generalizability across different market conditions, surpassing the limitations of previous models. Coupled with trading algorithms for real-world scenarios, CryptoMamba demonstrates its practical utility by translating accurate forecasts into financial outcomes. Our findings signal a huge advantage for SSMs in stock and cryptocurrency price forecasting tasks.
Gyeong Min Baek, Young Ah Shin, Gye Hyun Jang, Ik Rae Jeong
Bitcoin address clustering is a technique used for Bitcoin deanonymization to determine address ownership. It serves as a valuable method for assessing the level of anonymity within the system and detecting addresses associated with illicit activities. The recent Taproot soft fork in Bitcoin has introduced significant privacy enhancements, making deanonymization more challenging. In this paper, we propose a novel on-chain heuristic approach, block number-based address clustering, which leverages the fundamental principle of 6 block confirmations for double-spending prevention. By relying on the trust relationships between transacting parties, our method enables the generation of clusters even upon the soft fork, where existing methods encounter challenges. To evaluate our heuristics, we analyze our approach using the address reduction ratio and pure contribution as key metrics. The results show the effectiveness of our method both before and after the soft fork, which implies that our approach remains unaffected by the usage of Taproot transactions. Furthermore, we provide real-world empirical cases that validate the practicality of our heuristics. As shown in the investigation cases conducted by the Korean National Police Agency, our method can generate new clusters and improve address ownership identification compared to the previous approaches.
Open access
Blockchain Technology Applications and Security
Peer-to-Peer Network Technologies
Advanced Steganography and Watermarking Techniques
Alanoud M. Almhlbdi, Norah D. Altowairqi, Areej Alshutayri, Rehab Qarout
Identifying hidden payloads in images has become increasingly critical as steganography continues to challenge traditional security measures. This paper introduces a deep learning framework for both the detection (binary classification) and fine-grained classification (multi-class) of steganographic payloads embedded using Least Significant Bit (LSB) techniques. The proposed system distinguishes between benign images and stego images containing five different payload types: HTML, JavaScript, PowerShell, URLs, and Ethereum-related data. To achieve this, we systematically evaluate various architectures, including a custom Convolutional Neural Network (CNN), hybrid CNN-GRU and CNN-LSTM models, and a Vision Transformer (ViT) at different input resolutions using 5-fold cross-validation. Our experiments reveal a critical finding: image resizing significantly degrades detection performance, as subtle LSB artifacts are often corrupted. While our custom CNN model achieved the highest mean cross-validation accuracy (0.9702), the hybrid CNN-GRU model demonstrated superior generalization on the held-out test set and external dataset, achieving a multi-class accuracy of 0.98 on the testset and 0.97 on the external. This result highlights the advantage of combining the CNN’s spatial feature extraction with the GRU’s ability to model sequential dependencies for robust payload identification on unseen data.
Open access
Advanced Steganography and Watermarking Techniques
Lukman Adewale Ajao, Buhari Ugbede Umar, Henry Ohiani Ohize, Eustace M. Dogo · 6 authors
The prevalence of political interference during election processes remains a significant challenge to the free, fair, and credible conduct of general elections. This election event is crucial as a pillar of democratic governance in any democracy, with the potential for unfitting disturbance and chaos, such as multiple votes, illicit voting, and malicious actors that can be exploited electronically to disrupt voting or affect vote counts. However, this research proposed to develop a secure, smart, verifiable e-voting system (SSVEVS) that can offer an authenticated end-to-end tally voting system, a top-secret ballot election system, and confidence in overall election integrity. The proof of this smart and secure electronic voting system utilizes a 64-bit quad-core ARM Cortex-A76 processor, integrated with multimodal biometric (facial and fingerprint) authentication systems, programmed with a deep-learning image processing (DLIP) algorithm to optimize image detection and recognition. Also, an Ethereum blockchain technology (EBT) with a homomorphic encryption algorithm was implemented on the system to ensure that the original information record is maintained, immutable, tamper-resistant, and transparent throughout the electoral process, and stores the information in a decentralized database application. The system achieved 1,424.501 TPS for 10,000 transactions with a mining time of 7.02 seconds. The biometric (facial and fingerprint) authentication achieved a False Acceptance Rate (FAR) and False Rejection Rate (FRR) of 0.00% respectively. The True Acceptance Rate (TAR) is 100%, with a false image template of 0.04% true identification rate (TPIR).
Open access
Internet Traffic Analysis and Secure E-voting
Advanced Steganography and Watermarking Techniques
Blockchain technology has been envisioned as an emerging facilitator of auditable, transparent, and secure electronic voting (e-voting) systems to overcome issues with traditional and electronic voting systems. However, preserving data integrity, offering voter privacy, and scalability in blockchainbased e-voting systems are persistent issues. In this systematic literature review of peer-reviewed research articles from 2018 to 2025, this paper explores cryptographic schemes, architecture designs for blockchain-based e-voting systems, and solutions for scalability. By taking an PRISMA-congruent structured research methodology approach, nine core studies are reviewed to discuss Zero Knowledge Proofs and blind signature schemes for maintaining privacy conservation, blockchain immutability to maintain integrity, and layer-2 scaling solutions to bypass throughput bottlenecks. Conclusions suggest that although transparency and audita-bility are elevated with applications of blockchain technology, implementation for massive-scale elections remains in its nascent stage and requires development in privacypreservation cryptographic schemes and scalable architecture designs. As a review paper, it compiles an updated summary of the status of the landscape of blockchain-based e-voting systems and highlights existing knowledge gaps and proposes research directions for developing secure, scalable, and privacy-respecting digital elections.
Open access
3 source records
Blockchain Technology Applications and Security
Internet Traffic Analysis and Secure E-voting
Advanced Steganography and Watermarking Techniques
Most existing research on decentralized IoT applications tends to address specific vulnerabilities, with relatively few techniques dedicated to managing privacy and trust issues. To mitigate these challenges, blockchain-based solutions are increasingly adopted to enhance the reliability and security of IoT networks. In particular, blockchain-based authentication frameworks offer a decentralized approach to storing and verifying device identities, enabling secure and trustless communication among devices and with external systems. However, current blockchain-based IoT systems often suffer from complexity and storage overhead. To address these limitations, we propose a novel solution tailored for large-scale IoT environments using a permissioned blockchain. Our approach incorporates optimized data storage and a lightweight authentication mechanism, offering improved scalability and reduced storage demands. Furthermore, we introduce, for the first time, the integration of homomorphic encryption to secure IoT data at the user end before uploading it to the cloud. The proposed framework is evaluated through comprehensive simulations and compared with existing benchmark models. This research contributes a trust-aware security model that significantly enhances both the privacy and security of IoT services.
Open access
Blockchain Technology Applications and Security
IoT and Edge/Fog Computing
Advanced Steganography and Watermarking Techniques
The core of blockchain technology, as a decentralized distributed ledger technology, lies in how to reach consensus without a centralized institution. Consensus algorithm is the cornerstone of blockchain, which determines the security, performance and decentralization degree of blockchain. This paper starts from the basic concept of blockchain consensus algorithms, analyzes the working principle, advantages and disadvantages, and application scenarios of current mainstream consensus algorithms, and discusses the future development trend of consensus algorithms.
Open access
Blockchain Technology Applications and Security
Cognitive Computing and Networks
Advanced Steganography and Watermarking Techniques
Imagine sharing that you know a secret without revealing the secret itself. This is what zero-knowledge proofs (ZKPs) aim to do. In ZKPs there is a prover who claims knowledge of something and a verifier who checks this claim. The goal of this project is to further explore current technologies revolving around ZKPs and understand possible adaptations to an everyday application beyond blockchain use cases. To explore the practical use of ZKPs, this project introduces a web puzzle application that keeps the solutions of individual users private using ZKPs. A user can solve a logic- based puzzle like Binairo or Sudoku and check the validity of their solution by sharing only a ZKP of the solution. That way, the solution never leaves the user’s device. To further strengthen the security, the following two checks are implemented: (1) making sure that the solution matches the original puzzle, and (2) integrating the user’s ID during the generation process. These checks prevent users from reusing a proof to “solve” other puzzles or for the proof to be stolen by another user. To implement this application, different ZKP frameworks are considered. Circom and snarkjs are selected because of their active development, clear documentation and good web development capabilities. The final result is a secure application that demonstrates how ZKPs can be applied in a realistic and practical way. This highlights their broader potential in digital security. In most applications, the impact of ZKPs is intentionally hidden, as good cybersecurity aims to operate in the background. The ZKP-Puzzles application puts the ZKPs in the spotlight and visualizes how ZKPs work.
Open access
graph theory and CDMA systems
Graph Labeling and Dimension Problems
Advanced Steganography and Watermarking Techniques
Traditional voting systems face numerous challenges, including security vulnerabilities, transparency issues, and operational inefficiencies, which undermine public confidence in electoral processes.Blockchain technology offers a promising solution with its immutable, decentralized, and cryptographically secure framework, addressing these critical issues.This paper presents a blockchainbased voting system implemented across multiple Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) platforms, including Binance Smart Chain, Fantom, Polygon, and Celo.The system leverages smart contracts for secure vote management and Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) for voter authentication, ensuring the uniqueness and authenticity of each vote.Our research includes a comprehensive evaluation of the system's performance, focusing on transaction costs, processing speed, and scalability.The findings demonstrate the potential of blockchain technology to efficiently handle large volumes of electoral data while maintaining security and integrity, thereby enhancing the reliability and transparency of voting systems.
Open access
Internet Traffic Analysis and Secure E-voting
Blockchain Technology Applications and Security
Advanced Steganography and Watermarking Techniques
Mohamadsajad afkhami, Mahmoud baghani, Amir toranjsimin, Hamid‐Reza Mahrooghi
This article introduces a secure and efficient framework for the storage and validation of medical images using the Ethereum blockchain platform, incorporating the decentralized capabilities of the Interplanetary File System (IPFS) and digital signature methodologies employing zero watermarking. Medical images are critical to patient diagnosis and treatment, necessitating robust security measures, especially during transmission over insecure networks. Our approach utilizes chaotic sequences and transformations through Integer Wavelet Transform (IWT) and Singular Value Decomposition (SVD) to create a digital signature that ensures the integrity and privacy of the images without modifying their content. The solution encrypts medical images before storing them in IPFS with their corresponding digital signatures to safeguard confidentiality. Upon access, the images are decrypted and their signatures are checked to confirm their integrity. The effectiveness of this methodology is demonstrated by its strong resilience to network disturbances and potential security threats, achieving an average Normalized Correlation (NC) value of 0.97. This performance underscores the potential of integrating advanced cryptographic techniques with blockchain technology to enhance the security of medical image data.
Open access
Advanced Steganography and Watermarking Techniques
G. Somasekhar, Sreedhar Jinka, Chinna Kullayappa Kanekal, Anusha Marouthu
Traditional voting schemes are often overwhelmed by problems such as deception, influence, and incompetence, which can be resolved by applying blockchain technology with transparency, decentralization, and immutability. This study proposes a safe and indisputable digital voting system with blockchain technology to maintain the integrity of the voting procedure. The reliability and privacy of the voting procedure are upheld with distributed ledger technology and cryptographic techniques. The essence of the proposed method is the immutability of the blockchain ledger, which ensures a tamper-proof record of each cast vote, promoting transparency and offering a way of audit for free verification. The proposed method employs cryptographic protocols to protect individual votes while preserving complete transparency and verifiability of the voting procedure. The InterPlanetary Filesystem (IPFS) is applied to ensure data integrity. Moreover, the practical Byzantine Fault Tolerance (pBFT) consensus algorithm is utilized to remove glitches in distributed settings. The proposed approach provides a decentralized platform where voters can cast their votes from anywhere without difficulty using an internet connection, eliminating the need for physical ballot papers and polling stations. Using immutable ledger and cryptographic security aspects in blockchain, the reliability of the voting procedure can be protected while maintaining voter anonymity and confidentiality. Finally, it is shown that the proposed scheme outweighs other existing approaches.
Open access
Blockchain Technology Applications and Security
Internet Traffic Analysis and Secure E-voting
Advanced Steganography and Watermarking Techniques
This study aims to explore a method for the de-anonymization of Bitcoin addresses based on Formal Concept Analysis (FCA).Although Bitcoin, as a decentralized cryptocurrency, offers user privacy protection, its anonymity has also been exploited by criminals, leading to an increase in illegal activities such as money laundering and terrorist financing.To address this challenge, we propose a novel deanonymization framework that constructs a formal context using Bitcoin transaction data and generates the corresponding concept lattice.By extracting the attribute weight vectors for each category, our model can effectively classify Bitcoin addresses, thereby identifying potential high-risk addresses.
Open access
Advanced Data and IoT Technologies
Internet Traffic Analysis and Secure E-voting
Advanced Steganography and Watermarking Techniques
The paper presents a comparative efficiency analysis of hashing algorithms in terms of applicability in zk-SNARK based systems. We have considered the hash functions sha256, sha3, blake2, mimc and poseidon, which are most widely used in modern distributed ledgers. To conduct experiments with measuring parameters, an infrastructure based on the ZoKrates toolbox was developed. A series of measurements with different input data was carried out for each algorithm. The number of constraints in the R1CS representation of the algorithm, the length of the proof key and the verification key, the running time of the setup phase of the protocol, and the proof generation time were measured. Based on the obtained results, we determined the boundaries of the practical applicability of algorithms for the problem of proving the knowledge of the preimage of a hash function using zk-SNARK circuits in distributed ledgers, and also identified emerging efficiency problems.
Open access
Blockchain Technology Applications and Security
Advanced Steganography and Watermarking Techniques
M S, Chaitrali Mulay, Karthiganesh Durai, G. Murali · 16 authors
Abstract Blockchain technology is a highly developed database system that shares information within a business web. It stores details in blocks connected chronologically, ensuring information integrity through consensus mechanisms that prevent unauthorised alterations. This decentralised system removes the need for a believable mediator, mitigating vulnerabilities and enhancing transaction security. Blockchain’s application spans the energy, finance, media, entertainment, and retail sectors. However, classical blockchain faces threats from quantum computing advancements, necessitating the development of quantum blockchain technology. Quantum blockchain, leveraging quantum computation and information theory, offers enhanced security and immutability. In this paper, different mathematical foundations, practical implementations and effectiveness of lattice‐based cryptography in securing blockchain applications are discussed. Analysis of how the cryptographic techniques can protect blockchain systems against quantum attacks is being done by using mathematical formulations and examples. Quantum computing strengthens blockchain security with advanced encryption and authentication, which is critical for safeguarding diverse sectors from evolving cyber threats. Further study on quantum‐resistant design is necessary if blockchain networks are to be robust and intact in the face of future technological developments.
Open access
Blockchain Technology Applications and Security
Cryptography and Data Security
Advanced Steganography and Watermarking Techniques
Abstract In an Instance-Hiding Interactive Proof (IHIP) (Beaver et al., in: Menezes and Vanstone (eds) Advances in cryptology—CRYPTO 1990, proceedings, lecture notes in computer science (including subseries lecture notes in artificial intelligence and lecture notes in bioinformatics), Springer, pp 326–338, 1990), an efficient verifier with a private input x interacts with an unbounded prover to determine whether x is contained in a language $$\mathcal {L}$$ <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"> <mml:mi>L</mml:mi> </mml:math> . In addition to completeness and soundness, the instance-hiding property requires that the prover should not learn anything about x in the course of the interaction. Such proof systems capture natural privacy properties and may be seen as a generalization of the influential concept of randomized encodings (Ishai and Kushilevitz, in: Proceedings 41st annual symposium on foundations of computer science, pp 294–304, 2000; Applebaum et al., in: 45th annual IEEE symposium on foundations of computer science, pp 166–175, 2004; Agrawal et al., in: Halldórsson, Iwama, Kobayashi, Speckmann (eds) Automata, languages, and programming, Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg, pp 1–13, 2015) and as a counterpart to zero-knowledge proofs (Goldwasser et al., in: Symposium on the theory of computing, 1985). We investigate the properties and power of such instance-hiding proofs and show the following: Any language with an IHIP is contained in $${\mathsf {NP/poly}}\cap {\mathsf {coNP/poly}}$$ <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"> <mml:mrow> <mml:mrow> <mml:mi>NP</mml:mi> <mml:mo>/</mml:mo> <mml:mi>poly</mml:mi> </mml:mrow> <mml:mo>∩</mml:mo> <mml:mrow> <mml:mi>coNP</mml:mi> <mml:mo>/</mml:mo> <mml:mi>poly</mml:mi> </mml:mrow> </mml:mrow> </mml:math> . If an average-case hard language has a constant-round IHIP, then infinitely often non-uniform one-way functions exist. There is an oracle with respect to which there is a language that has an IHIP but not an SZK proof. IHIP’s are closed under composition with any efficiently computable function. We further study a stronger version of IHIP (that we call Simulatable IHIP) where the view of the honest prover can be efficiently simulated. For these, we obtain stronger versions of some of the above: Any language with a Simulatable IHIP is contained in $${\textsf{AM}}\cap {\textsf{coAM}}$$ <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"> <mml:mrow> <mml:mi>AM</mml:mi> <mml:mo>∩</mml:mo> <mml:mi>coAM</mml:mi> </mml:mrow> </mml:math> . If a worst-case hard language has a Simulatable IHIP, then explicit uniform one-way functions exist.
Open access
2 source records
Cryptography and Data Security
Advanced Steganography and Watermarking Techniques
Abstract The image protection of non‐fungible tokens based on zero‐watermark methods has received widespread attention. However, on the one hand, existing zero‐watermark methods are often limited to complex texture changes in the host image, and the features for constructing the zero‐watermark are vulnerable to geometric attacks. On the other hand, a single watermark image cannot adapt to the diverse usage scenarios of non‐fungible tokens. This paper proposes a robust personalized zero‐watermark scheme to address the challenges above. Firstly, the image regions suitable for constructing zero‐watermarks are highlighted by the non‐uniform weighted reconstruction, and the U‐Net is introduced for feature extraction against the geometric attacks. At the same time, the watermark images generated by generative models that are suitable for the usage scenario have achieved zero‐watermark addition and protection for non‐fungible token image content. The proposed method has been experimentally verified to have a certain degree of robustness in geometric and non‐geometric attacks.
Open access
Advanced Steganography and Watermarking Techniques
Baowei Wang, Fengxiao Guo, Yuting Liu, Bin Li · 5 authors
Abstract Voting plays a vital role in democratic societies. Adopting electronic voting can effectively increase voter participation and significantly reduce the financial burden on the organizers. In recent years, with the prevalence of blockchain technology, numerous blockchain-based electronic voting schemes have emerged. Compared with traditional electronic voting schemes, they have more favorable security features. However, existing schemes generally suffer from inefficient voting procedures, limited functionality, and dependence on specific blockchain platforms, making them challenging to deploy in diverse voting scenarios. This paper proposes an efficient and versatile electronic voting scheme on blockchain that addresses these problems using our proposed smart contract-based aggregated blind signature, zero-knowledge proofs, and threshold encryption scheme. In the paper, the scheme’s various features, including security, are analyzed in detail, and the scheme is deployed and tested on the Hyperledger Fabric and Ethereum blockchain platform. The experiment results demonstrate that the voting scheme satisfies the security requirement, and it has outstanding advantages in performance.
Open access
Internet Traffic Analysis and Secure E-voting
Cryptography and Data Security
Advanced Steganography and Watermarking Techniques
Henry Ohiani Ohize, Adeiza James Onumanyi, Buhari Ugbede Umar, Lukman Adewale Ajao · 11 authors
Abstract Electronic voting (e-voting) systems are gaining increasing attention as a means to modernize electoral processes, enhance transparency, and boost voters’ participation. In recent years, significant developments have occurred in the study of e-voting and blockchain technology systems, hence reshaping many electoral systems globally. For example, real-world implementations of blockchain-based e-voting have been explored in various countries, such as Estonia and Switzerland, which demonstrates the potential of blockchain to enhance the security and transparency of elections. Thus, in this paper, we present a survey of the latest trends in the development of e-voting systems, focusing on the integration of blockchain technology as a promising solution to address various concerns in e-voting, including security, transparency, auditability, and voting integrity. This survey is important because existing survey articles do not cover the latest advancements in blockchain technology for e-voting, particularly as it relates to architecture, global trends, and current concerns in the developmental process. Thus, we address this gap by providing an encompassing overview of architectures, developments, concerns, and solutions in e-voting systems based on the use of blockchain technology. Specifically, a concise summary of the information necessary for implementing blockchain-based e-voting solutions is provided. Furthermore, we discuss recent advances in blockchain systems, which aim to enhance scalability and performance in large-scale voting scenarios. We also highlight the fact that the implementation of blockchain-based e-voting systems faces challenges, including cybersecurity risks, resource intensity, and the need for robust infrastructure, which must be addressed to ensure the scalability and reliability of these systems. This survey also points to the ongoing development in the field, highlighting future research directions such as improving the efficiency of blockchain algorithms and integrating advanced cryptographic techniques to further enhance security and trust in e-voting systems. Hence, by analyzing the current state of e-voting systems and blockchain technology, insights have been provided into the opportunities and challenges in the field with opportunities for future research and development efforts aimed at creating more secure, transparent, and inclusive electoral processes.
Open access
Blockchain Technology Applications and Security
Internet Traffic Analysis and Secure E-voting
Advanced Steganography and Watermarking Techniques
Nurfajar Iskandar, Yusmanizar Yusmanizar, Andi Vita Sukmarini
The emergence of Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) technology has led to a significant transformation in the creative industry and media content realm, introducing fundamental new opportunities for the media sector as well as for the conservation and preservation of newspaper content. This research aims to analyze the impact of implementing Blockchain NFTs technology on the conservation and preservation of print newspaper content. This is motivated by the fact that many print media outlets have not yet adopted NFT technology, despite its potential to secure and provide economic value to both old and new print news content. The adoption of Blockchain NFTs technology is considered a forward-looking technology that offers excellent opportunities for the preservation of print newspaper content. This research uses a qualitative method to explore the impact of Blockchain NFTs technology on the conservation and preservation of print newspaper content. The research methods include literature review, in-depth interviews, and secondary data analysis. The findings indicate that implementing Blockchain NFTs technology can provide benefits such as better data security, transparency, and the potential for new economic value through the creation and trading of NFTs from historically or otherwise significant print newspaper content. Keywords: Blockchain, Conservation, NFTs, Newspapers, Preservation
Open access
Blockchain Technology Applications and Security
Advanced Steganography and Watermarking Techniques