Seyed Ahmadreza Abtahi, Reza Abtahi, Bruno Rodrigues, B. Stiller
This demo paper presents DappTweet, a Web3 app that lets any blockchain address send posts and direct messages on Twitter/X via a MetaMask wallet using an addressproven posting workflow. A relay account publishes on the userâs behalf and embeds the senderâs address and the transaction hash for public verification. The prototype implements three flows: public post, private message, and verification.
Luigi Mastromauro, Muslum Ozgur Ozmen, Michel A. Kinsy
The increasing complexity of decentralized IoT and edge environments requires systems capable of real-time topological self-organization, autonomous role assignment, and adaptive resilience under dynamic and unpredictable conditions. However, current approaches often rely on static structures, centralized orchestration, or periodic reevaluation, limiting their scalability and robustness. In this work, we propose AtoNet, a fully decentralized and adaptive algorithm for dynamic topology management in IoT networks. AtoNet leverages behavioral validation, trust-based role assignment, and inter-agent coordination to ensure resilient structure formation and secure, autonomous operation. The system includes real-time event detection, fault tolerance via heartbeat-based monitoring, and local topology reconfiguration triggered by trust decay or network stress. Experimental simulations demonstrate that AtoNet maintains low latency, high throughput, and fast adaptation rates, even in highly volatile or congested scenarios, highlighting its potential applicability in decentralized edge-IoT contexts.
Citizen Science involves the engagement of public in scientific research to augment and disseminate scientific knowledge. This nurtures the practice of sharing and contributing to data gathering and monitoring activities with the participation of scientific communities and general public. It incorporates idea generation through community formation and invites scientists for leadership, guidance and coordination. Existing citizen science programs are centralized; however, such endeavors may be supported through decentralized autonomous communities realized through blockchains and smart contracts adding transparency and security to the projects. Blockchain is a shared immutable distributed ledger technology that addresses double spending and Byzantine Generalâs Problem and enables peer to peer digital payments in absence of intermediaries. It has several applications beyond financial sector or cryptocurrencies and one such utility is the smart contract that entails a piece of script that will be automatically executed if certain conditions are fulfilled, in other words, it is a self-executing digital contract. In this paper, we propose a novel colored blockchain technique to develop decentralized autonomous communities leveraging which citizen science can be perceived in a decentralized context. We present the details of the framework that uses such colored blockchain technology to implement decentralized citizen science concept. We also propose an alternate decentralized application leveraging smart contract to implement decentralized citizen science concept.
Exploration equipment for extreme environments like the Antarctic region constraints in power consumption, size, and weight. Furthermore, unmanned mobile exploration in environments with distributed IoET (Internet of Extreme Things) nodes requires long-range, delay-tolerant wireless communication. For these extreme environments, delay-tolerant communication systems can consider distributed ledgers as a way to record gains and losses to ensure coalition and reliability among nodes. However, Proof-of-Work (PoW), the most widely studied method for securing distributed ledger reliability, is simple to operate but highly energy-consumption. Proof-of-Stake (PoS) offers an energy-efficient alternative. This paper assumes a partially Î-synchronized distributed system model for security analysis in PoS and analyzes the impact of network delays on the system. This analysis is an interpretation to identify methods for securing stability against balance attacks in public systems from the perspective of a partially Î-synchronized model. The proposed technique is a game-theoretic approach that uses honest nodes to form a coalition to control delay. This study investigates the possibility of expanding the upper bound of the security region according to the attacker's occupation rate in a balanced attack by controlling the time delay required for nodes in a partially Î-synchronized communication network to transmit messages to each other.
Ambi Rachel Alex, Syed Hassan Imam Gardezi, P S Krishnendu, P. Aruna · 5 authors
The rapid expansion of the Internet of Things (IoT) has led to an unprecedented rise in interconnected devices, generating vast volumes of sensitive data that demand robust security and trust mechanisms. Traditional centralized architectures often struggle to ensure integrity, privacy, and resilience against single points of failure, making them unsuitable for next-generation IoT ecosystems. This paper proposes a blockchain-enabled decentralized trust framework to strengthen the security, transparency, and reliability of IoT networks. By integrating distributed ledger technology with lightweight consensus protocols, the framework establishes immutable device identities, secure data exchange, and automated access control without dependence on centralized authorities. The proposed approach enhances interoperability among heterogeneous IoT devices while minimizing latency and computational overhead. Experimental evaluation and comparative analysis demonstrate that the blockchain-based trust model effectively mitigates common threats such as data tampering, spoofing, and unauthorized access, paving the way for a scalable and trustworthy foundation for future IoT applications.
The Internet of Things (IoT) has made secure and reliable data communication more difficult due to its dynamic topologies, energy constrictions, and intelligent and sophisticated adversaries.To address these difficulties in IoT networks, we propose G-TrustChain, an integrated hybrid framework based on Graph Neural Networks (GNNs) for intelligent and dynamic routing and a light Blockchain for distributed trust.G-TrustChain makes use of node-level parameters including latency, remaining energy, and behavioural trust scores derived from a Graph Attention Network (GAT) for routing paths.A lightweight Directed Acyclic Graph (DAG)-structure Blockchain maintains trust scores with a distributed, scalable, and tamper-proof ledger that minimizes dependency on a centralized authority.Experimentation is done for 10,000 rounds, G-TrustChain demonstrated superior routing performance to other protocols such as Trust-based Routing, BBTR, and ROUTENET.It is achieving 95.6% packet delivery ratio, 91.2% detection rate of attacks, and energy consumption as low as 0.0110 J/bit.Also achieving more accurate and reliable trust scores despite energy constraints and higher/extensive attacks.These outcomes demonstrated G-TrustChain provides energy-efficient, secure, and intelligent data communication for the next generation of IoT networks.
The symbiotic radio network (SRN) plays a crucial role in green communication solutions by facilitating cooperative communication between devices of primary and secondary links, leading to enhanced transmission quality and optimized resource efficiency. For the joint demodulation of primary and secondary signals, the multiparty trust is essential for operators with different interests. Building multiparty trust in a decentralized manner is challenging for the implementation of the SRN. As an emerging distributed ledger technology, blockchain provides multiparty trust between unreliable devices to share data and resources cooperatively. This paper proposes a consortium Blockchain-based Cooperative Communication scheme for SRN (BCC-SRN), where Hyperledger Fabric is used as the trust anchor with better security, higher throughput, and more flexible organization. In particular, a credit-based incentive mechanism is established to encourage different parties to behave according to the negotiated contracts. The credit is recorded by smart contracts and adjusted based on the contribution of the corresponding cooperators. Simulation results prove that the proposed BCC-SRN is highly effective in improving cooperation security and transmission quality.
The proliferation of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) swarms in mission-critical applications for 6G and the Internet of Things (IoT) introduces significant security vulnerabilities stemming from their dynamic, distributed, and resource-constrained nature. Traditional security paradigms are often inadequate for these complex cyber-physical systems. This paper proposes a novel, cross-layer security framework that ensures robust and lightweight operation for UAV swarms. The framework is founded on a novel Entropy-Derived Physically Unclonable Function (EPUF) based on DRAM, which employs a data-driven characterization process designed to achieve near 100% reliability in simulation through a data-driven characterization process, which is validated through extensive simulation, addressing a critical limitation of conventional PUFs. To counteract sophisticated threats, we formulate the key management problem as a Markov Decision Process (MDP) and introduce a deep reinforcement learning (DRL) agent that dynamically optimizes key update frequency, balancing security posture against energy consumption. Furthermore, we leverage a lightweight, permissioned blockchain as a decentralized trust anchor for public key management, providing an immutable and resilient ledger and enhancing the principles of distributed and edge intelligence. The core authentication protocol's security is formally verified using the ProVerif tool and Belief Logic, proving its robustness against a Dolev-Yao adversary. Experimental simulations demonstrate that our framework significantly outperforms conventional methods, reducing authentication latency and energy consumption by over 95% compared to PKI-based schemes while effectively mitigating replay and impersonation attacks.
The InterPlanetary File System (IPFS) has been successfully established as the de facto standard for decentralized data storage in the emerging Web3. Despite its decentralized nature, IPFS nodes, as well as IPFS content providers, have converged to centralization in large public clouds. Centralization introduces BGP routing-based attacks, such as passive interception and BGP hijacking, as potential threats. Although this attack vector has been investigated for many other Web3 protocols, such as Bitcoin and Ethereum, to the best of our knowledge, it has not been analyzed for the IPFS network. In our work, we bridge this gap and demonstrate that BGP routing attacks can be effectively leveraged to censor content in IPFS. For the analysis, we collected 3,000 content blocks called CIDs and conducted a simulation of BGP hijacking and passive interception against them. We find that a single malicious AS can censor 75% of the IPFS content for more than 57% of all requester nodes. Furthermore, we show that even with a small set of only 62 hijacked prefixes, 70% of the full attack effectiveness can already be reached. We further propose and validate countermeasures based on global collaborative content replication among all nodes in the IPFS network, together with additional robust backup content provider nodes that are well-hardened against BGP hijacking. We hope this work raises awareness about the threat BGP routing-based attacks pose to IPFS and triggers further efforts to harden the live IPFS network against them.
Siamak Abdi, Giuseppe Di Fatta, Atta Badii, Giancarlo Fortino
Blockchain is a distributed ledger technology that has applications in many domains such as cryptocurrency, smart contracts, supply chain management, and many others. Distributed consensus is a fundamental component of blockchain systems that enables secure, precise, and tamper-proof verification of data without relying on central authorities. Existing consensus protocols, nevertheless, suffer from drawbacks, some of which are related to scalability, resource consumption, and fault tolerance. We introduce Blockchain Epidemic Consensus Protocol (BECP), a novel fully decentralised consensus protocol for blockchain networks at a large scale. BECP follows epidemic communication principles, without fixed roles like validators or leaders, and achieves probabilistic convergence, efficient message dissemination, and tolerance to message delays. We provide an extensive experimental comparison of BECP against classic protocols like PAXOS, RAFT, and PBFT, and newer epidemic-based protocols like Avalanche and Snowman. The findings indicate that BECP provides desirable gains in throughput, consensus latency, and substantial message-passing efficiency compared to existing epidemic-based approaches, validating its usability as an effective and scalable approach for next-generation blockchain systems.
Thomas Sandholm, Sayandev Mukherjee, John Feland, Bernardo A. Huberman
Frequent handovers between satellites, and the lack of a central (on-board) state database, challenge the delivery of communication services from Low-Earth-Orbit (LEO) satellite constellations. Traditional blockchain protocols to maintain distributed state are unsuitable for on-board deployment as they do not take the moving dynamics and inter-satellite links of constellation orbits into account. In this paper, we propose LeoDist, a distributed ledger for LEO constellations. We introduce novel concepts, such as leader-handover, neighbor synchronization, and service area gossiping to meet the challenges of this dynamic environment. To the best of our knowledge, LeoDist is the first distributed ledger on board LEO satellites to support the core routing, state synchronization and consensus blockchain protocols while accounting for orbital dynamics and coverage area. We show using a lab testbed with the NASA core Flight System (cFS) that LeoDist is able to route, gossip, reach consensus, synchronize state and process transactions efficiently, offering 3-4 orders of magnitude faster leader failover and handover compared to Raft, up to 171 distributed transactions per second, and broadcasting across a constellation of 95 satellites in less than 50 ms on standard UDP/IP links.
We present Free-Delete, a censorship-resistant group-chat protocol whose membership is validated by non-fungible-token (NFT) ownership while user privacy ranges across five selectable modes. A single Groth16 circuit, anchored in a sparse Merkle tree of verifiable commitments, realises (i) Fully Anonymous messaging, (ii) Linkable Anonymous reputation building, (iii) Publicly Identified disclosure, (iv) Confidential end-to-end encryption, and (v) Rate-Limited Accountability that revokes keys on spamâall without moderator involvement or economic deposits. A black-paper prototype written in TypeScript, Circom 2, and Solidity achieves 0.35 s for register and 1.38 s for postMessage on consumer hardware; on-chain verification costs 3â5.5Ă105 gas per proof on Polygon. These results demonstrate that NFT-gated, stake-free, privacy-preserving communication can be deployed today on any EVM chain.
Layer-2 protocols can assist Ethereum's limited throughput, but globally broadcasting layer-2 data limits their scalability. The Danksharding evolution of Ethereum aims to support the selective distribution of layer-2 data, whose availability in the network is verified using randomized data availability sampling (DAS). Integrating DAS into Ethereum's consensus process is challenging, as pieces of layer-2 data must be disseminated and sampled within four seconds of the beginning of each consensus slot. No existing solution can support dissemination and sampling under such strict time bounds. We propose PANDAS, a practical approach to integrate DAS with Ethereum under Danksharding's requirements without modifying its protocols for consensus and node discovery. PANDAS disseminates layer-2 data and samples its availability using lightweight, direct exchanges. Its design accounts for message loss, node failures, and unresponsive participants while anticipating the need to scale out the Ethereum network. Our evaluation of PANDAS's prototype in a 1,000-node cluster and simulations for up to 20,000 peers shows that it allows layer-2 data dissemination and sampling under planetary-scale latencies within the 4-second deadline.
As data-driven applications and user demands grow, managing content delivery in Named Data Networking (NDN) has become more challenging. Traditional caching methods struggle to scale in dynamic and decentralized environments where content popularity changes and collaboration among routers is needed. This paper introduces a decentralized collaborative caching framework for NDN, combining Multi-Agent Deep Reinforcement Learning (MADRL) and blockchain technology. MADRL enables routers to autonomously adjust caching strategies based on local states and interactions with neighboring routers, improving cache hit rates and reducing retrieval costs. Blockchain technology ensures fair and transparent rewards through a cryptocurrency-based token system, incentivizing collaboration and minimizing free-riding risks. The framework also integrates Delegated Proof of Stake (DPoS) for efficient, secure validation of caching actions. Simulations demonstrate that the approach significantly enhances caching efficiency, reduces latency, and improves scalability, addressing the challenges of dynamic decentralized environments.
Recently, the promising unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)-assisted wireless networks (UAWNs) have emerged by advocating the UAVs to provide wireless transmission services. However, owing to the ever-growing volume of data traffic and the untrusted network operation environment, efficiently and securely assigning limited bandwidth for high-quality wireless communication between UAVs and mobile users poses a significant challenge. To address this challenge, we propose a novel secure UAV-bandwidth allocation scheme to provision reliable wireless transmission services for mobile users in UAWNs. Specifically, we first introduce a novel blockchain-empowered framework for secure bandwidth allocation, designed to automate payment processes and deter malicious activities through the immutable logging of transactional and behavioral data. Wherein, a smart contract is designed to regulate the honest behaviors of both mobile users and UAVs during bandwidth allocation with a distributed manner. Besides, a delegated proof-of-stake (DPoS) with reputation consensus protocol is presented to ensure the authenticity and efficiency of the decision-making process. Further, we apply the Stackelberg game theory to model the dynamic of the bandwidth allocation between mobile users and UAVs. In this game, the UAVs act as game leaders to determine the bandwidth price, while each mobile user acts as a game follower, making decision on the bandwidth request. We utilize the backward induction method to derive the optimal strategies of both parties, culminating in the identification of the Stackelberg equilibrium of the formulated game. Finally, extensive simulations are carried out to show the superiority of the proposed scheme over conventional schemes in terms of security, efficiency, and fairness in bandwidth allocation.
Network slicing constitutes a paradigm shift as it transforms a 5G network into a set of versatile sub-networks for designated users, with specific requirements on security levels and quality of service (QoS) demands. Therefore, organizations with very high security and non-negotiable QoS requirements, such as the military, are leveraging the utilization of 5G network slicing for their operations. However, some network management challenges remain before constructing a resilient network with 99.999% reliability to different attacks, while providing isolation, high throughput and low latency. In this respect, we propose a reinforcement learning-based multi-agent resilience framework, which comprises centralized training using global information and decentralized decision-making by individual agents, each corresponding to an access point, to autonomously adapt network slicing configurations based on the evolving tactical landscape. The proposed framework continuously assesses network conditions and threat scenarios, to dynamically allocate the required resources and mitigate vulnerabilities. Numerical results exhibit that our proposed framework effectively defends against different adversarial actions and maintains operational continuity without compromising the QoS.
Cryptocurrency mining, especially Bitcoin's Proof of Work (PoW), significantly impacts the environment through high energy consumption, carbon footprint, and e-waste. Ethereum's adoption of Proof of Stake (PoS) in 2022 offers a potential solution to reduce these effects. This study compares the environmental impacts of PoW and PoS, focusing on energy consumption, mining efficiency, hash rate, and carbon footprint. Using regression analysis and t-tests on data from Bitcoin (PoW) and Ethereum (before and after PoS) from 2017 to 2024, the results show that PoS significantly reduces energy consumption, carbon footprint, and e-waste, while improving mining efficiency. The findings highlight that transitioning to PoS can mitigate the environmental impact of cryptocurrency mining and encourage its broader adoption to align with global sustainability goals.
This study, conducted in 2024, explores the potential of blockchain technology to enhance data integrity in space communications and operations. With the growing complexity and reliance on satellite networks for global connectivity, Earth observation, and deep space exploration, ensuring tamper-proof and secure communication is critical. The research proposes a blockchain-based framework that integrates satellites, ground stations, and spacecraft as decentralized nodes, addressing existing security challenges such as data tampering, unauthorized access, and signal jamming. Based consensus combining Proof of Stake (PoS) algorithm with Practical Byzantine Fault Tolerance (PBFT) processes is introduced to optimize security and latency in space environments. The feasibility of the framework is evaluated through simulations and case studies, demonstrating its effectiveness in mitigating space-specific threats, with practical implications for missions such as NASA's Artemis program. The study concludes that blockchain offers a transformative solution for securing space communications and urges stakeholders to pilot such technologies for future space operations.
Vijayan Sugumaran, E. Dinesh, R. Ramya, Elangovan Muniyandy
This research work proposes a Distributed Blockchain-Assisted Secure Data Aggregation (Block-DSD) technique for MANETs, ensuring high security and energy efficiency in disaster management scenarios. A Zone-based Clustering Approach (ZCA) is employed to segment the network into secure zones, with optimal Cluster Heads (CHs) selected using the Artificial Neuro-Fuzzy Inference System (ANFIS). Data aggregation is secured through a Two-Step Secure (STS) method and Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC), while optimal routing is achieved using the Improved Elephant Herd Optimization (IEHO) algorithm. Simulations using ns-3.25 demonstrate a 97% Packet Delivery Ratio (PDR), 20% lower energy consumption compared to existing methods, and minimal latency of 0.0012 s for emergency data, validating the proposed framework's efficiency and robustness in dynamic MANET environments.
The Space-Air-Ground Integrated Network (SAGIN) is a pivotal direction for the advancement of the sixth generation mobile communication systems (6G), and blockchain technology has been recognized as a potential solution for secure spectrum sharing within SAGIN. However, the implementation of wireless blockchain networks encounters significant challenges, particularly limited throughput and scalability. These challenges are primarily due to the limitations of existing consensus protocols, which were designed for general distributed systems, struggling to adapt to highly dynamic SAGIN scenarios. An efficient and secure spectrum sharing framework can be established by leveraging delegated proof of stake (DPoS) and practical byzantine fault tolerance (PBFT). Accordingly, we propose SatBFT, a scalable consensus protocol that emphasizes the inclusion of satellites and employs a DPoS-PBFT mechanism tailored to SAGIN. The protocol is carefully designed to accommodate the various links in SAGIN and to manage coexisting interference. By adopting a multi-layer architecture, SatBFT introduces a comprehensive consensus framework that incorporates radio environment sensing, dynamic behavior evaluation and efficient block generation. Simulations based on the proposed security model, latency model, and spectrum utilization model confirm that SatBFT significantly enhances the overall performance of blockchain in SAGIN, achieving an optimal balance between efficiency, scalability, and security.
Payment Channel Networks (PCNs) can significantly enhance the scalability of blockchain transactions without requiring major modifications to the underlying distributed ledger protocol. However, to enable efficient and secure payment routing over multiple channels, PCNs necessitate additional components: an onion routing protocol for anonymity and a locking mechanism to prevent race conditions. Unfortunately, these mechanisms can be exploited by malicious actors to launch flood and loot attacks. We investigate the impact of flood and loot attacks on networks that employ local knowledge-based routing algorithms. In these scenarios, malicious nodes can manipulate hash-locks to unfairly capitalize on the benefits of participating nodes. We specifically examine the effects of these attacks on three popular routing algorithms: Swift, Speedy Murmurs, and Silent Whispers. Our analysis employs metrics like attack gain, attack cost, and transaction ratio to assess the impact of the attacks. Our simulation-based results demonstrate that, even with a relatively small fraction of malicious nodes (between 0.66% and 3.3%), the average attack transaction ratio across all evaluated routing algorithms is a concerning 16.23%.