Blockchain-Assisted Hierarchical Attribute-Based Encryption Scheme for Secure Information Sharing in Industrial Internet of Things

Abstract

The edge devices will produce enormous quantities of data daily as the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) expands in scope. Still, most IIoT data is stored in data centers, making it challenging to transfer data between domains safely. Smart logistic products have dramatically changed due to the prevalence of decentralized edge computing and blockchain in the industry sector. To address the need to exchange data between logistics networks, we proposed a novel decentralized hierarchical attribute-based encryption (HABE) scheme combining edge computing and blockchain. To begin, we offer an IoT data encryption strategy in which edge devices can send data to a nearby cloud network for data processing while maintaining privacy. In addition, we developed a blockchain-integrated data-sharing scheme that makes it possible for users to share data via the use of edge and cloud storage. In particular, an IoT device incorporates an encryption-based authentication system to verify users’ access rights at the network’s periphery in a decentralized manner. Using HABE, we provide a blockchain-integrated architecture for the IoT that protects user privacy. The suggested design utilizes the edge and cloud network paradigms and HABE to maintain privacy and works well with smart logistics applications. The authentication time of the proposed model is reduced by 1.5 times compared with the centralized model. The analyses and experimental findings show that the proposed blockchain-integrated edge computing architecture is better than the existing schemes in terms of data sharing, data privacy, and security.

Keywords

• Blockchain
• data encryption
• edge devices
• HABE
• IIoT
• user privacy