Improving the Performance of Searchable Symmetric Encryption by Optimizing Locality

Abstract

Both individuals and organizations prioritize data security and privacy, leading to an increasing focus on technological solutions that emphasize these aspects. Searchable symmetric encryption stands out as a prominent choice for secure storage and search of encrypted data on cloud servers, contributing to this objective. While searchable symmetric encryption offers numerous benefits, it also faces certain challenges, particularly when dealing with large databases. One significant challenge is poor performance, often attributed to poor locality. Visiting multiple locations can significantly increase the time required for data retrieval. Additionally, optimization methods aimed at improving locality can sometimes impact read efficiency or result in excessive storage of the encrypted index on the cloud server. In this paper, we present a scheme that effectively addresses these issues. We have enhanced the encrypted inverted index storage mechanism to improve information retrieval performance. Our scheme achieves optimal locality O(1) and optimal read efficiency in O(1), resulting in a significant increase in retrieval speed. Through experimentation with real-world data, we have demonstrated the practicality, accuracy, and security of our scheme.