Blockchain-Based Distributed Information Hiding Framework for Data Privacy Preserving in Medical Supply Chain Systems.

Abir El Azzaoui,Yi Pan,So Hyeon Kim,Jong Hyuk Park,Haotian Chen

doi:10.3390/s22041371

Abstract

Medical supply chain communication networks engender critical information and data. Notably in the COVID era, inner personal and private information is being shared between healthcare providers regarding the medical supply chain. In recent years, multiple cyber-attacks have targeted medical supply chain communication networks due to their lack of security measures. In the era where cyber-attacks are cheaper and easier due to the computational power and various algorithms available for malicious uses, security, and data privacy requires intensive and higher measures. On the other hand, Information Hiding Techniques (IHT) compromise various advanced methods to hide sensitive information from being disclosed to malicious nodes. Moreover, with the support of Blockchain, IHT can bring higher security and the required privacy levels. In this paper, we propose the implementation of Blockchain and smart contract with the information hiding technique to enhance the security and privacy of data communication in critical systems, such as smart healthcare supply chain communication networks. Results show the feasibility of the framework using Hyperledger smart contract along with the desired security level.

Highlights

Critical Internet of Things addresses the time-critical and data-critical systems that demand higher security levels and deal with highly confidential information
The message is divided into multiple segments and encrypted using the one-time hash key registered in the smart contract, sent throughout the Blockchain network
We propose the implementation of Blockchain and smart contract to the information hiding technique to enhance the security and privacy of data communication in critical systems, such as smart healthcare

Summary

Introduction

Critical Internet of Things addresses the time-critical and data-critical systems that demand higher security levels and deal with highly confidential information. Smart healthcare supply chain communication networks engender various private medical data including personal information about the patient and their medical history, which make it a part of critical IoT systems. In this paper, we propose the fusion of Blockchain with IoT security systems for private and secure communication between multiple layers over the classical channel To this end, we will define the deployed technologies. An attacker can use this delay to deliver fake messages to neighboring nodes in faster unicast communication, and blockchain systems provide a consensus mechanism to avoid this problem. When other nodes in the network receive the broadcast issued by a node authenticated by the consensus mechanism, we consider this message to be trusted and unforged information and package this information into a new block and add it to the current chain of blockchain. Public blockchain ensures the reliability and security of data by cryptography economics and generally uses cryptography verification combined with consensus mechanisms, such as proof of work or proof of ownership to ensure trusted access [8]

Methods

Discussion

Conclusion