Trends in Development of Databases and Blockchain

This work is about the mutual influence between two technologies: Databases and Blockchain. It addresses two questions: 1. How the database technology has influenced the development of blockchain technology?, and 2. How blockchain technology has influenced the introduction of new functionalities in some modern databases? For the first question, we explain how database technology contributes to blockchain technology by unlocking different features such as ACID (Atomicity, Consistency, Isolation, and Durability) transactional consistency, rich queries, real-time analytics, and low latency. We explain how the CAP (Consistency, Availability, Partition tolerance) theorem known for databases influenced the DCS (Decentralization, Consistency, Scalability) theorem for the blockchain systems. By using an analogous relaxation approach as it was used for the proof of the CAP theorem, we postulate a "DCS-satisfiability conjecture." For the second question, we review different databases that are designed specifically for blockchain and provide most of the blockchain functionality like immutability, privacy, censorship resistance, along with database features.Comment: Accepted in The Second International Workshop on Blockchain Applications and Theory (BAT 2020

Secure and Privacy Driven Energy Data Analytics

PhD thesis in Information technologyRenewable resources are the main energy sources in a smart grid project. In order to ensure the smooth functioning of the smart grid, Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) need to be utilised efficiently. The objective of the SmartNEM project is to effectively utilise the technologies such as Machine Learning, Blockchain and Data Hubs for the aforementioned purpose and at the same time ensure a secured and privacy preserved solution. The data involved in smart grids require high security and it can be sensitive due to the household data which contains personal information. The individuals can be reluctant to share these data due to mistrust and to avoid unnecessary manipulation of the data they provide. In order to overcome this it is necessary to build a trust based framework in which one could ensure data security and data privacy for the data owners to open up their data for data analysis. To achieves this we have proposed an architecture called TOTEM, Token for Controlled Computation, which integrates Blockchain and Big Data technologies. The conventional method of data analysis demands data be moved across the network to the location where the execution happens, however in the TOTEM architecture computational code will be moved to the data owner’s environment where the data is located. The TOTEM is a three layer architecture (Blockchain consortium layer, Storage layer and Computational layer) with two main actors, data provider and data consumer. Data provider provides metadata of the data they own and provide resources for the execution of data. Data consumers will get an opportunity to execute their own code on the data provider´s data. For a controlled computation and to avoid malicious functions an entity called totem is introduced in the architecture. The authorised users should meet the requirements of Totem value for executing their code on the requested data. For live monitoring of the totem value throughout the run time is achieved with the components such as totem manager and updaters in the computational layer. The code must follow a specific format and will undergo preliminary checks with the TOTEM defined SDK and smart contracts deployed by the data providers in the blockchain network. The Extended TOTEM architecture is also proposed to address the additional features when it is needed to combine the results from multiple data providers without sharing the data. This research work focused on the design of the TOTEM architecture and implementation as a proof of concept for the newly introduced components in the architecture. We have also introduced artificial intelligence in the framework to improve core features’ functionality. In the present research, the TOTEM architecture is proposed for the SmartNEM project to utilize the energy data for decision making and figure out the trends or patterns, while maintaining data privacy, data ownership, accountability and traceability. Moreover, the architecture can be extended to other domains such as health, education, etc, where data security and privacy is the key concern in sharing the data

Advancing Healthcare Security: A Cutting-Edge Zero-Trust Blockchain Solution for Protecting Electronic Health Records

The effective management of electronic health records (EHRs) is vital in healthcare. However, traditional systems often need help handling data inconsistently, providing limited access, and coordinating poorly across facilities. This study aims to tackle these issues using blockchain technology to improve EHR systems' data security, privacy, and interoperability. By thoroughly analyzing blockchain's applications in healthcare, we propose an innovative solution that leverages blockchain's decentralized and immutable nature, combined with advanced encryption techniques such as the Advanced Encryption Standard and Zero Knowledge Proof Protocol, to fortify EHR systems. Our research demonstrates that blockchain can effectively overcome significant EHR challenges, including fragmented data and interoperability problems, by facilitating secure and transparent data exchange, leading to enhanced coordination, care quality, and cost-efficiency across healthcare facilities. This study offers practical guidelines for implementing blockchain technology in healthcare, emphasizing a balanced approach to interoperability, privacy, and security. It represents a significant advancement over traditional EHR systems, boosting security and affording patients greater control over their health records. Doi: 10.28991/HIJ-2023-04-03-012 Full Text: PD

Performance Optimization of a Blockchain-Enabled Information and Data Exchange Platform for Smart Grids

Data Availability Statement: Not applicable.Copyright © 2023 by the authors. Exchanging information and data within smart grids is crucial to improve interoperability among system users. Traditional cloud-based data exchange schemes are centralized on a single trusted third-party platform. The schemes consequently suffer from single-point failure, a lack of data protection, and uncontrolled access. Blockchain enables data exchange in a decentralised and secure manner. A new platform is proposed in this work for exchanging data within smart grids using blockchain. It allows users to securely exchange data without losing ownership. This platform provides solutions to three critical problems: privacy, scalability, and user ownership. Particularly, the blockchain-based smart contract technology gives participants the programmability to access data. All interactions are authenticated and recorded by the other participants in the tamper-resistant blockchain network. Furthermore, the performance of the proposed blockchain platform is enhanced by integrating it with an artificial neural network (ANN). The proposed method is used to predict the network’s throughput and latency, and the network administrator uses these predicted values to change the network’s settings for a high throughput and low latency. Throughout the results, the proposed model achieves performance improvements in blockchain-enabled information and data exchange and adapts well to the dynamics of smart grids.European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under grant agreement No. 774500