Blockchain standards for compliance and trust

Blockchain methods are emerging as practical tools for validation, record-keeping, and access control in addition to their early applications in cryptocurrency. This column explores the options for use of blockchains to enhance security, trust, and compliance in a variety of industry settings and explores the current state of blockchain standards.N/

Content Addressed P2P File System for the Web with Blockchain-Based Meta-Data Integrity

With the exponentially scaled World Wide Web, the standard HTTP protocol has started showing its limitations. With the increased amount of data duplication & accidental deletion of files on the Internet, the P2P file system called IPFS completely changes the way files are stored. IPFS is a file storage protocol allowing files to be stored on decentralized systems. In the HTTP client-server protocol, files are downloaded from a single source. With files stored on a decentralized network, IPFS allows packet retrieval from multiple sources, simultaneously saving considerable bandwidth. IPFS uses a content-addressed block storage model with content-addressed hyperlinks. Large amounts of data is addressable with IPFS with the immutable and permanent IPFS links with meta-data stored as Blockchain transactions. This timestamps and secures the data, instead of having to put it on the chain itself. Our paper proposes a model that uses the decentralized file storage system of IPFS, and the integrity preservation properties of the Blockchain, to store and distribute data on the Web

Service Orchestration and Federation for Verticals

The next generation mobile transport networks shall transform into flexible and agile SDN/NFV-based transport and computing platforms, capable of simultaneously supporting the needs of different vertical industries, e.g., automotive, e-health and media, by meeting a diverse range of networking and computing requirements. Network slicing, has emerged as the most promising approach to address this challenge by enabling per-slice management of virtualized resources and provisioning and managing slices tailored to the needs of different vertical industries. Service orchestration is the key enabler for slicing that allows efficient placement of virtual network functions over the infrastructure as well as optimal allocation of virtual resources among all network slices to deliver guaranteed, reliable and scalable services of different verticals. Besides, due to the limited footprint of infrastructure operators, it is also required to enable the interconnection and federation of multiple administrative domains, to effectively allow services to span across several providers. This paper presents the design of Service Orchestrator (SO) in the 5G- TRANSFORMER system, which deals with service orchestration and federation across multiple domains.This work has been partially funded by the EU H2020 5G-TRANSFORMER Project (grant no. 761536

Systematic review of the literature, research on blockchain technology as support to the trust model proposed applied to smart places

The smart places are vulnerable with corrupted or compromised data, with the false integration of new devices, and devices with firmware versions inconsistent. These risks worsen with the increasing volume and diversity of data, devices, infrastructures and users connected to the Web. The systematic review of the literature were selected 190 documents, which reveals the growing interest on the theme of blockchain technology with the publication of 14 documents in 2014 to about 100 already in 2017. The articles focused on the areas bitcoin (about 40%), IoT (about 30%), financial (about 15%), cryptocurrencies, electronic government (about 12%), smart contracts, smart cities, business (with about 10% each) and health (about 5%). This perspective confirms the generic model study data supported in blockchain technology for smart places, especially when applied to smart cities and the specific field of the mobility ecosystem, with the use of the new concepts of the application of blockchain in IoT, smart contracts and e-governance.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Innovation and Challenges of Blockchain in Banking: A Scientometric View

Blockchain has been gaining focus in research and development for diverse industries in recent years. Nevertheless, innovations that impact to the banking nurture a potential for disruptive impact globally for economic reasons; however it has received less scholarly attention. Hence the effect of blockchain technologies on banking industry is systematically reviewed. The relevant literature is extracted from Scopus, Web of Science and bibliometric techniques are applied. While a bulk of earlier papers focuses only on bit coins, a broader framework is envisaged that synthesizes interdisciplinary thematic areas for advancement; hence novelty in current work. A few practical and theoretical implications for stakeholders in view of technology, law and management are discussed

Blockverse: A Cloud Blockchain-based Platform for Tracking in Affiliate Systems

Affiliate systems are a crucial piece of today’s online advertising. In affiliate systems, web traffic is directed from certain sites displaying ads to the websites of those company whose products or services are advertised. The way in which these ads are monetized is diverse and can respond to different models. In many cases, affiliates establish a cost based on impressions (displays of the ad) or on clicks. However, more intricate models are becoming widespread, such as the cost per action, where the affiliate incomes are due to the users performing certain actions in the target website. In particular, in the world of iGaming, it is frequent that affiliates charges are based on registrations, deposits or money lost on bets. In this scenario, Blockverse is a tool whose objective is to record transactions occurring in affiliate systems at large scale, using a permissioned blockchain implemented atop state-of-the-art cloud technology. Additionally, the system will be able to execute smart deals that generate income for affiliates based on the agreed conditions, and to provide real-time analytics in the context of the affiliate system

Building Information Management (BIM) and blockchain (BC) for sustainable building design information management framework

At present, sustainable design is experiencing energy consumption and cost-effectiveness challenges in the building industry. A recent body of literature argues that the development of emerging smart digital technologies, such as Building Information Management (BIM) and blockchain (BC), offer immediate benefits to the industry. However, the current application of BIM and BC in the sustainable design and construction process focuses on smart energy and construction management, with little attention to addressing challenges for applying BIM to sustainable design and proposing strategies in terms of the usability of these technologies in the management of building construction projects. Therefore, this paper sets out to explore the potential roles of an integrated BIM and BC approach for sustainable building design information management. The first attempt is presented to use BC aided BIM for sustainable building design coordination and collaboration in multiple building stages. BC has the potential to address challenges that hinder the industry from using BIM for sustainable design, which has been unearthed. An innovative BC enhanced transaction process in BIM is required for sustainable building development. Roles of a user level driven smart contract system of BC can be used to enhance BIM system in the sustainable buildings process. The role of BC is primarily at user level driven smart contracts and their record value exchange capabilities. A user level (BIM stakeholders) driven BC technology for transaction in BIM process flow is revealed, and the user level (sustainable building design project stakeholders/BIM clients) driven and the smart contract enabled BIM+ BC architecture to address challenges of BIM for sustainable design has been further circulated according to the literature. Subsequently, a conceptual architecture of BIM + BC for Sustainable Building Design Information Management Framework in building project management has been proposed, validated, and refined. The Framework has two level encompassing structures and flow. The high-level framework is focused on strategy, whilst the low-level framework demonstrates technical components in detail. This architecture supporting project stakeholders in managing information, has the potential to achieve and ensure the realization of sustainable design goals through the interactive realization of smart contracts integrated into the user level driven BIM + BC system and its recording value exchange function through three user-driven levels, namely user, system, and transaction