Blockchain Papers

Maria Carannante, Oday Masoudi, Alessandro Mazzoccoli

No abstract is available for this record.

Bhabani Sankar Samantray, K Hemant Kumar Reddy

Abstract In the era of artificial intelligence, the AI-generated image (AIGI) market is an emerging sector that faces significant challenges related to ownership, privacy, and security. These issues, especially prevalent in NFT markets, can be effectively addressed by the integration of advanced technologies such as blockchain, the InterPlanetary File System (IPFS), and Quantum Key Distribution (QKD). This study proposes a comprehensive trading framework that incorporates state-of-the-art methodologies and algorithms to simulate the entire AI image trading process. For image generation, the framework utilises diffusion models (LCM-LoRA + SDXL) and Generative Adversarial Networks (GANs), employing LCM-LoRA and LCMScheduler from Stable Diffusion XL Base 1.0 to accelerate image generation and reduce inference steps. Implementation is carried out using PyTorch and the Diffusers library, running on a CUDA-enabled GPU. The generated images are securely stored in the distributed IPFS storage system, while decentralised trading is facilitated through integration with the Hyperledger MiniFab tool. The framework supports multiple trading mechanisms, including Blind English Sealed-Bid Auctions (BESEA), fixed-price auctions with a first-come, first-served (FCFS) model, Dutch auctions with royalty redistribution, and fractionalized auction trading. To ensure secure communication between buyers and sellers, the BB84 QKD protocol is employed to generate a shared secret key with information-theoretic security. The generated key is processed through key sifting to derive a symmetric key, which is zero-padded to the 256-bit length required by AES-256-CBC. It is then directly used as the encryption key to encrypt AI-generated images and their associated metadata before storage on IPFS. Experimental evaluation across four auction mechanisms and up to 250 NFTs shows the Dutch auction achieving the highest sales volume (up to 211 NFTs sold) and the Fractionalized auction the highest revenue ( 98,270). The IPFS storage maintains sub-0.75-second upload latency with 100% file verification success. Blockchain-layer benchmarking across 100–500 participants records mean chaincode latency ranging from approximately 22 to 53 seconds and throughput of 0.018–0.045 TPS.

Vaibhav Singh, Dr. Jogender

With the rapid expansion of digital communication and data storage, cybersecurity has become a critical concern for organizations and individuals. Cryptographic methods play a vital role in ensuring data confidentiality, integrity, and authentication. This study explores the mathematical foundations of encryption, blockchain security, and post-quantum cryptography. Traditional encryption methods such as symmetric and asymmetric encryption rely on number theory and complex mathematical problems like integer factorization and discrete logarithms. Blockchain security is reinforced by cryptographic hashing and digital signatures, ensuring tamper-proof transactions. However, the advent of quantum computing poses a significant threat to existing cryptographic protocols, necessitating the development of post-quantum cryptographic methods. This research provides an in-depth analysis of current cryptographic techniques, evaluates their effectiveness, and discusses future advancements in quantum-resistant cryptography.

Bilal El Issaoui

MRS‑AUTH is a novel authentication framework that achieves deniability even against an active verifier who may adaptively query candidate credentials both before and after receiving a challenge. Unlike ring signatures or zero‑knowledge proofs – where the prover holds a single secret witness that can be extracted under coercion – MRS‑AUTH exploits the multiplicative structure of linear Diophantine equations. Through recursive decomposition, it generates a Diophantine forest of exponentially many syntactically valid credential chains. The authentic chain is sampled uniformly from this forest and committed together with k‑1 indistinguishable aliases using a fixed‑shape Merkle tree with dummy leaves, eliminating structure‑ and length‑based side‑channel leakage. The Forest Symmetry Theorem proves that all chains are structurally information‑theoretically indistinguishable. However, the full index‑anonymity against an active verifier is computational and bounded in Theorem 6.6 by k · ε_SHA3 + ε_coll + negl(λ). For cryptographic scales N ∼ 10⁴², the Ehrhart‑based continuous‑volume approximation yields an effective entropy exceeding 371 bits, with a statistical distance to the perfect uniform distribution of Δ ≤ 2⁻¹³⁵ – well below the 128‑bit security threshold. Empirical validation via exact enumeration and a chi‑squared test (χ²/dof ≈ 0.985) confirms the uniformity. A constant‑time Rust implementation, leveraging the subtle and zeroize crates, exhibits an execution time of approximately 0.12 ms across four orders of magnitude of N, demonstrating practical deployability. The work also formalises the Active Verifier Game model, a new adversarial definition that quantitatively captures coercion resistance in a post‑quantum setting.

Rayaan Pasha

This paper presents a threshold-cryptographic architecture for reducing the risk of premature leakage of digital examination papers during the interval between question-paper finalization and examination administration. The proposed design separates the data path from the control path. Examination content is encrypted using a fresh AES-256-GCM key, while the key is protected through envelope encryption under a key-release service. The capability to release that key is distributed using (k,n)-Shamir secret sharing across independent custodians, preventing any single custodian from unilaterally authorizing early release. At the scheduled release time, a quorum-based time authority provides an independently attested timestamp. Once the required time quorum and custodian threshold are satisfied, the key-release service reconstructs its private key within an HSM boundary, unwraps the examination key, and derives recipient-specific keys for individual examination centers. These keys are separately wrapped under each center's registered public key, limiting the impact of a compromise at any single examination center. The paper presents an actor and trust model, an explicit adversary model, a step-by-step release protocol, a threat-to-control security analysis, and a qualitative comparison with physical custody, blockchain-anchored distribution, and time-lock-puzzle-based timed-release cryptography. It also explicitly discusses residual risks, including custodian collusion, post-decryption optical or physical exfiltration, hardware and supply-chain trust, and compromise of the time-authority quorum. The architecture is presented as a research design rather than a claim of unconditional leak prevention. Future work includes implementing a prototype, evaluating quantitative performance, replacing reconstruct-and-zeroize key handling with threshold decryption, evaluating post-quantum key-encapsulation mechanisms, and conducting a formal mechanized security proof.

E D Baymurzina, A S Simakova, V D Poroshina, V N Yurina

No abstract is available for this record.

Narendra Kumar Chahar, Arvind Dhaka, Amita Nandal, Vijay Kumar

Digital image steganography has evolved from traditional rule-based techniques to advanced data-driven frameworks enabled by deep learning. However, existing surveys remain fragmented, often focusing on limited aspects while overlooking emerging paradigms such as blockchain-integrated and quantum-based approaches. This paper presents a comprehensive and systematic review of digital image steganography following the PRISMA 2020 guidelines, covering studies published between January 2015 and April 2026 across six major scientific databases. From an initial pool of 26,539 records, 83 relevant studies were selected through a rigorous two-stage screening process. The review provides a unified analysis of steganographic techniques by examining five dimensions: structural evolution and taxonomy, algorithmic modifications and hybridisation, application domain mapping, integration of emerging technologies, and future research trends. Comparative evaluation indicates that deep learning-based methods achieve 18–23% higher steganalysis resistance than classical approaches, whereas classical methods retain a 5–8 dB PSNR advantage. The quantitative synthesis further confirms the inherent capacity–imperceptibility–security trilemma, wherein no reviewed technique simultaneously achieves $$\text {PSNR} > 42$$ dB, embedding capacity $$> 4$$ bpp, and detection error rate $$> 0.48$$ . Six open challenges and seven future research directions are identified and grounded in evidence from the included studies, with explainable steganography, quantum-resistant frameworks, and latent diffusion model integration emerging as the most critical priorities for advancing the field toward practical and secure deployment.

Rodrigo Jara Espinoza, Yohamin Nafit Pimentel Alarcon, Angelo Rodrigo Taco Jiménez, Fabricio Martin Chavez Rodriguez

Quantum computing poses a significant threat to classical asymmetric cryptography, which is essential for ensuring confidentiality, authentication, and key exchange in contemporary digital infrastructures. Although post-quantum cryptography (PQC) provides mechanisms that resist quantum attacks, its implementation in Internet of Things (IoT) systems is challenged by constrained resources, including limitations in computation, memory, energy, latency, and bandwidth, and the heterogeneity of devices. This paper offers a comprehensive narrative review of PQC approaches applicable to IoT, systematically organizing 30 peer-reviewed studies published between 2022 and 2026 across four layers: device, communication, distributed trust, and application. Additionally, the review examines two cross-cutting dimensions, privacy and side-channel resistance. The analysis indicates a significant prevalence of lattice-based schemes, hybrid strategies, and integrations with blockchain technology, zero-knowledge proofs, federated learning, homomorphic encryption, AI, and Zero Trust architectures. Notably, key gaps remain in side-channel evaluation, migration pathways, deployment costs, and real-world validation—issues that are particularly critical given the long lifecycles of IoT devices and the ongoing threat of “harvest now, decrypt later” attacks.

Bin Wang, Linghui Lyu, Xiaoya Yin, Chang Wang · 5 authors

No abstract is available for this record.

Manish Singh, Tapan Kumar Jain, Shankar Bhattacharjee

Communication and networked systems rely heavily on cryptographic digital signatures to ensure message authenticity, integrity, and non-repudiation. However, rapid advancements in quantum computing and artificial intelligence (AI) have expanded the attack surface, posing significant threats to conventional public-key schemes such as RSA, DSA, and ECDSA. Quantum algorithms undermine their underlying hardness assumptions, while AI-driven techniques enable traffic analysis, side-channel inference, and behavioral pattern recognition. This review presents a structured analytical assessment of post-quantum signature schemes and privacy-preserving authentication mechanisms to address these dual threats. It evaluates lattice-based, hash-based, and zero-knowledge proof-based signatures, as well as anonymity-enhancing schemes such as ring and group signatures. A unified analytical framework is introduced to map cryptographic schemes to quantum and AI-assisted threat models, based on parameters such as security strength, anonymity, efficiency, and applicability. The analysis shows that lattice- and hash-based schemes provide strong quantum resistance, while privacy-preserving mechanisms enhance anonymity but introduce performance trade-offs. It also identifies a gap in integrating post-quantum cryptography with AI-resilient privacy mechanisms. The findings highlight the need for unified, future-ready cryptographic designs.

Maria Surkova

This article concludes a series of publications dedicated to the development of the NeuroAtom cryptographic primitive and presents the final ecosystem architecture. The core implements eight security functions—hashing, stream cipher, pseudorandom number generator, message authentication code, digital signature, key derivation function, key exchange, and authenticated encryption—within a footprint of 9.6 KB of payload (5.2 KB code and 4.4 KB data). Testing according to the NIST SP 800-22 methodology was conducted on 16 samples, each of 100 MB in size (835 binary sequences per sample): 8 samples for REAL mode and 8 samples for TRAP mode (pseudo-data traps). All 16 samples demonstrated a proportion of successful sequences within acceptable limits (not below 818 out of 835 for tests with a significance level of 0.01). Avalanche characteristics were measured in 24 tests (12 functions × 2 modes), with no zero avalanches detected. The inapplicability of Shor's algorithm is shown due to the absence of abelian hidden subgroups. The TRAP mode precludes the possibility of constructing an oracle for Grover's algorithm without knowledge of the plaintext: each incorrect key generates its own cryptographically correct reality, and the quantum computer has no criterion for selecting the true one. A software implementation on a general-purpose processor provides a hashing speed of 80 MB/s. Preliminary estimates for a hardware implementation (180 nm CMOS) indicate approximately 10,000 logic gates with a complete absence of static memory; expected power consumption is estimated at 20 pJ per operation. Previously published results of NIST testing, avalanche analysis, and proofs of quantum resistance are integrated into this article as elements of a unified body of evidence.

Sirojev Muhriddin Ramazonov Iftixor

Ushbu maqolada cloud computing muhitida ta'lim muassasalarining maxfiy ma'lumotlarini himoya qilishda encryption (shifrlash) texnologiyasini qo'llash masalalari ko'rib chiqilgan. Zamonaviy ta'lim tizimlarida raqamlashtirishning jadal rivojlanishi axborot xavfsizligiga yangi talablar qo'ymoqda. Tadqiqotda AES, RSA, ECC kabi simmetrik va asimmetrik shifrlash algoritmlari tahlil qilingan, ularning ta'lim platformalarida qo'llanilishi, samaradorligi va cheklovlari o'rganilgan. Shuningdek, end-to-end encryption, zero-knowledge proof va post-kvant kriptografiya kabi ilg'or yondashuvlar ko'rib chiqilgan. Tadqiqot natijalari shuni ko'rsatadiki, to'g'ri tanlangan va tatbiq etilgan shifrlash tizimi ta'lim muassasalarining ma'lumotlar xavfsizligini 97% gacha ta'minlashi mumkin. Maqola dasturchilar, ta'lim texnologiyalari mutaxassislari va axborot xavfsizligi sohasidagi tadqiqotchilar uchun amaliy ahamiyat kasb etadi.

Sobia Akmal, Dr. Amnah Firdous, Muniba Saleem, Sabeeka Fatima

No abstract is available for this record.

Daniel Makolo, Obafemi Babatunde Desmond, Dauda Shaibu Anibe, Ejiga Timothy Ikoojo · 7 authors

Cryptography is the backbone of modern network security, providing confidentiality, integrity, authentication, and non-repudiation for digital communication. However, the rapid evolution of cyber threats, particularly the looming arrival of large-scale quantum computers, poses serious challenges to the cryptographic algorithms that protect today's networks. This paper presents a systematic review of cryptography in network security, following the PRISMA 2020 guidelines. A total of 68 studies published between 2016 and 2025 were selected from five major academic databases: IEEE Xplore, ACM Digital Library, Scopus, Web of Science, and ScienceDirect. The review covers classical symmetric and asymmetric algorithms, widely deployed cryptographic protocols such as TLS 1.3, IPsec, and SSH, and the growing body of work on post-quantum cryptography (PQC). Key findings include the following: NIST finalized three post-quantum cryptographic standards (FIPS 203, 204, and 205) in August 2024; lightweight cryptography standards for IoT devices were published in 2025 with the selection of ASCON; and real-world deployment of hybrid classical/post-quantum schemes has already begun in major web browsers and messaging applications. This paper also examines emerging trends in homomorphic encryption, zero-knowledge proofs, and AI-driven cryptanalysis. Based on the findings, this review identifies critical gaps in PQC migration strategies, IoT security, and the integration of cryptography with artificial intelligence, and proposes directions for future research.

Bilal El Issaoui

Information-Theoretic Deniability and the Forest Analogy This paper establishes information-theoretic deniability through a precise structural argument: the Forest Analogy. The central result is a symmetry property showing that an attacker who possesses a valid alibi chain stands in exactly the same position as an attacker who knows only the public parameter N. The verification function cannot distinguish the real authentication chain from any alibi chain. This property holds without cryptographic assumptions — it is information-theoretic, not computational. The authentication chain is built on the linear Diophantine system N = 19A + 9B, in which every number N has approximately N/171 valid representations per layer. A three-layer Matryoshka structure produces a multiplicatively structured search space of approximately 10¹¹² operations. The key insight is that this search space is symmetric: it is equally large and equally unnavigable from outside the system as from within it. Uniform Sampling and the Generation Algorithm Uniform sampling means here that every valid chain — consisting of A, B, a1, b1, a2, b2 satisfying 19A + 9B = N, 19a1 + 9b1 = A, 19a2 + 9b2 = a1, and the digit-root conditions — has exactly equal probability of being generated as the real authentication chain. The generation algorithm achieves this through a hierarchical weighted CDF sampler (cumulative distribution function), operating as follows: 1. The distribution over all valid A-values is computed, where the weight assigned to a given A equals the exact number of valid chains on layers 1 and 2 that can be extended from that A. 2. A is sampled according to this weighted distribution. 3. Given A, the value a1 is sampled in the same manner, with weights determined by the exact number of valid (a2, b2)-pairs beneath that a1. 4. Finally, (a2, b2) is chosen uniformly at random from all solutions to 19a2 + 9b2 = a1. All weights are computed exactly. This hierarchical weighted sampling procedure therefore induces a provably uniform distribution over all complete chains, without requiring the generator to enumerate or store them explicitly. Proposition (Uniform Chain Distribution): Let N be a fixed public parameter. Let Omega(N) denote the set of all valid chains C = (A, B, a1, b1, a2, b2) satisfying: - 19A + 9B = N - 19a1 + 9b1 = A - 19a2 + 9b2 = a1 - and the digit-root conditions on each layer. Then the hierarchical weighted CDF sampler generates each chain C in Omega(N) with probability exactly 1 / |Omega(N)|. Proof. Define the following counting functions: - w2(a1) = |{(a2, b2) : 19a2 + 9b2 = a1, digit-root conditions satisfied}| - w1(A) = sum over all valid a1 of w2(a1), where the sum runs over all a1 satisfying 19a1 + 9b1 = A for some valid b1 - w0 = sum over all valid A of w1(A) = |Omega(N)| The sampler proceeds in three steps: Step 1. A is drawn with probability P(A) = w1(A) / w0. Step 2. Given A, a1 is drawn with probability P(a1 | A) = w2(a1) / w1(A). Step 3. Given a1, the pair (a2, b2) is drawn uniformly with probability P(a2, b2 | a1) = 1 / w2(a1). The joint probability of generating the complete chain C = (A, B, a1, b1, a2, b2) is: P(C) = P(A) * P(a1 | A) * P(a2, b2 | a1) = w1(A) / w0 * w2(a1) / w1(A) * 1 / w2(a1) = 1 / w0 = 1 / |Omega(N)| Since this holds for every C in Omega(N), the sampler induces the uniform distribution over Omega(N). "Remark" B and b1 are uniquely determined once A, a1, a2, and b2 are fixed, via the Diophantine equations. They do not need to be sampled separately. The uniformity therefore holds over all complete chains, including these values. Theorem (Forest Symmetry): Let N be a public parameter and let C = (A, B, a1, b1, a2, b2) be any valid verification chain. Then for every valid alibi chain C': P(C is authentic | verification succeeds, C') = P(C is authentic | verification succeeds) Proof: The verification function evaluates solely against N. By Proposition (Uniform Chain Distribution), every valid chain is generated with identical probability 1 / |Omega(N)|. The alibi C' therefore carries no information about which chain is authentic. Formally, C' and the event "C is authentic" are conditionally independent given that verification succeeds. The posterior probability is thus unaffected by knowledge of C'. The Forest Analogy: The Forest Analogy makes the symmetry precise. The public parameter N is the forest. Each representation (A, B) on layer zero is a tree. Each sub-representation on layer one is a branch. Each leaf is a layer-two representation. All leaves are identical — every chain verifies correctly against N. An attacker holding a valid alibi leaf cannot determine which leaf is the real one, because the verification function provides no distinguishing information. *This work is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Commercial licensing (without ShareAlike) available on request: elissa_oui@outlook.com*

T.A. Krithika, Muniappan Muniappan M, Mayank Raj, Naveen T · 5 authors

Abstract—This paper defines the privacy focused alternative for popular cloud storage providers. It differentiates itself from conventional service providers by incorporating client side encryption and zero knowledge proofings. It proposes a secure, private and trust-less system for photo storage and sharing. Keywords—End-to-End Encryption(E2EE), Zero-Knowledge, Cloud Computing, Photo Storage, Cryptography, Key Management, Client-side Encryption

Chirag Sathish, Arshad Khan, Deepesh Haldankar, Nikhita G · 5 authors

The increasing adoption of telemedicine has amplified concerns regarding the security of patient data, particularly in the context of remote authentication and the growing threat of advanced cyber and quantum-enabled attacks. Traditional telehealth security mechanisms rely on static authentication and cryptographic protections, which fail to adapt to changing risk conditions and provide limited resilience against credential compromise and future quantum threats. This paper proposes TAPQ-Health, a Threat-Adaptive Post-Quantum Authentication Pipeline that dynamically adjusts the strength of authentication and cryptographic hardness in real time based on contextual and behavioral risk. The proposed framework integrates four components a lightweight context-bound zero-knowledge proof authentication mechanism, a federated machine learning-based risk assessment model, threat-triggered escalation to lattice-based post-quantum cryptography with adaptive re-encryption, and decentralized, tamper-evident storage using IPFS. A fully implemented prototype was evaluated using 200 real telemedicine sessions and a large-scale analysis of 1.3 million authentication records. Experimental results demonstrate a mean end-to-end latency of 102.84 ms, 100 percent authentication success, and a 61 percent reduction in cryptographic overhead compared to static post-quantum configurations, while achieving 96 percent risk detection accuracy. These results indicate that threat-adaptive post-quantum authentication can significantly enhance telemedicine security without compromising usability or scalability.

Shohanur Rahman Shohan

No abstract is available for this record.

Sergey Abrahamyan

Abstract Zero-knowledge range proofs (ZKRPs) allow a prover to convince a verifier that a committed value lies in a given interval without revealing the value itself. Such proofs are widely used in financial applications and cryptocurrencies. This paper presents a new noninteractive ZKRP protocol derived from an order-revealing encryption (ORE) construction, enabling comparisons over encrypted data. The proposed protocol adapts a large-domain ORE structure to obtain an efficient range-proof mechanism and introduces a corresponding key-management/setup procedure. We discuss correctness, security considerations under standard ORE leakage, and provide performance and memory estimates.

Rongxi Wei

This paper systematically reviews the research foundation, core technologies, and practical applications of cryptography in the blockchain field. Algorithms, and data immutability relies on cryptographic hash functions and Merkle tree structure; the balance between transparency and privacy in block chain relies on the encryption technique of zero-knowledge proofs, ring signature, homomorphic encryption. Therefore, every part of block chain is based on cryptography; without the mathematical guarantee of cryptography, the trust decentralized by block chain is meaningless. The security of block chain mainly relies on the encryption techniques such as hash functions, digital signatures and encryption algorithms, and traditional cryptographic methods will have vulnerabilities when facing quantum computing, because quantum computer may be used to break currently commonly used algorithms such as RSA, ECC eventually. This “security paradox" requires us to pay more attention to block chain technologies, because block chain technology needs to advance in tandem with cryptography. Traditional blockchain technologies can’t be used indefinitely. Against this background, researching block chain －based crypto is of great theoretical significance and practical value: on the one hand, researching on new cryptographic methods applicable to block chain can extend the area of cryptosystems and give people a new way of solving the security problems in block chain; on the other hand, we should not neglect the possibility of breaking the block chain by combining quantum computing with cryptanalysis research.

Matias Zepeda, Werner Kristjanpoller, Marcel C. Minutolo

No abstract is available for this record.

Vallamkonda Jyothi, Nagella Poojitha, Mutthumula Bhavana, Attar Khadar Basha · 5 authors

The research areas of digital forensics are subject to Blockchain (BC) technology implementation and enhanced over the current alternative introduced in this publication and capable of addressing certain grave issues, which are concomitant with data collection and preservation of digital evidence. Another puzzle that is resolved by the blockchain is the inherent transparency, immutability that central storing data is extremely prone, and the blockchain ensure that this does not happen, as it provides the location with a distributed setting that would make security and responsibility in the conventional world of digital forensics a nightmare. Cryptographic Distributed Ledger Technologies of Blockchain are based on the consensus technology, which allows aggregating, housing and authenticating digital evidences in a set of peer pairs in a secure way. As a result, the study that has been suggested in this paper, Blockchain Based Digital Forensic Architecture (BC-DFA) is founded on the distributed characteristics of blockchain, and is concerned with the decentralization and security of digital evidences. A combination of multiple essential methods including AOKGE: authentication with the best key generation encryption, SBVM: Secure Block Verification Mechanisms and implementing Multi-key Homomorphic Encryption or MHE is used to end up with the truly secure data encryption. The information and the secret key are spread in a manner that reduces the chances of single point failure that is associated with the centralized cloud design that reveals the information in the literal form and promotes hacking and unauthorized access. The SBVM authentication is done to authenticate all the data blocks in order to ease the tracing of any tampering or alteration of forensic evidence.

Mohamed Seifelnasr, Mohamed Mobarak, Riham AlTawy, Amr Youssef

The metaverse transforms how individuals interact, work, and engage in virtual environments, creating new opportunities in gaming, education, e-commerce, and social networking. At the core of this experience are avatars (i.e., digital representations of users that serve as their proxies in virtual spaces). Ensuring secure and privacy-preserving communication between avatars presents critical challenges, particularly in protecting metaverse user privacy by preventing the linking of avatars to users' social and professional lives. Adopting anonymous schemes such as ring signature schemes requires access to all public keys within the anonymity set, which is impractical in the metaverse. In this paper, we proposeSPARTA(Secure andPrivacy-preserving protocol withRole separation andTrustworthiness forAvatars in the metaverse), a protocol that enables avatar authentication and maintains avatar unlinkability. By leveraging mercurial signatures, our approach allows metaverse users to generate multiple unlinkable avatars without requiring repeated registration with the metaverse service provider, thereby enabling seamless role separation. Additionally, by using a time-based hash chain, only avatars in possession of a reputation token from the time-based hash chain can submit their feedback on a smart contract based on their interactions. Given the soundness property of zero-knowledge proof and the origin-hiding property of mercurial signatures, we formally prove that${\sf SPARTA}$achieves mutual authentication, avatar unlinkability, and penalization enforcement. Additionally, we analyze the performance overheads introduced by its cryptographic primitives and compare${\sf SPARTA}$with existing metaverse authentication protocols. Furthermore, we implement the protocol using socket programming. This implementation simulates real-time message exchanges between protocol entities, resulting in an end-to-end latency of 105 ms. Compared to existing metaverse authentication frameworks,${\sf SPARTA}$provides unlinkable avatar authentication that achieves mutual authentication, role separation, and data sovereignty without reliance on an online trusted third party. The concurrent implementation between two Raspberry Pi devices demonstrates the scalability of${\sf SPARTA}$, achieving a total completion time of 17.338 seconds for 1000 concurrent authentications, corresponding to a throughput of approximately 57.7 authentications per second, confirming its practicality for large-scale metaverse environments.

Surendra Kumar Shukla, Vishan Kumar Gupta, Paras Jain, Lipika Goel · 6 authors

The lattice-based encryption is one of the most appropriate choices to secure the blockchain technology during the post-quantum era withstanding security against a quantum adversary attack. The authors study lattice-based cryptography and integrate it with the blockchain architecture in order to address gaps that have recently been exposed because of the continued advances with quantum systems. However, a majority of the classical cryptographic designs such as RSA and ECC are designed around the difficulty of particular mathematical problems, one of which is the Shor algorithm, which makes them highly susceptible to quantum algorithms. Learning with Errors (LWE) and Short Integer Solution (SIS). The paper will discuss the feasibility of lattice-based digital signatures, zero-knowledge proofs, and encryption systems that should be deployed in blockchain so that the integrity of data should be maintained, transactions should be secure, and privacy of users should be preserved. Furthermore, it introduces performance features of blockchain where it considers the lattice-based cryptographic systems where it entails scalability, complexity of computing, and latency. The results are then employed to support the options of encryption with lattices to lay the groundwork for the architecture to quantum-resistant blockchain-based frameworks, and the ultimate stage of secure and scalable decentralized networks in the post-quantum world.