Secure Data Management Using IPFS and Ethereum

Abstract

Blockchain technology is receiving increased attention over the past few years. Blockchain is essentially a decentralized, distributed digital ledger in which data is organized into blocks. The data stored in Blockchain is secured using cryptographic properties. Storage is the main concern when the volume of transactions increases. Handling data in huge amount may lead to increased overheads as data can only be appended to it, and the previous data cannot be deleted. So, it led to the development of the InterPlanetary File System (IPFS). IPFS is a distributed database with peer-to-peer file system and uses content-addressable hash value which is used to verify the data. Using IPFS, one can upload the data in the form of text, images as well as videos. While uploading the data in IPFS, the protocol returns a unique hash value for the data via gateway. This hash value is securely stored in Blockchain. Based on the hash value, the data can be retrieved. In IPFS, data is distributed among the network participants locally. The proposed work combines both IPFS and Blockchain technologies. This scheme uses IPFS for storing large volume of data, removes duplication, share files, and hosts them. The proposed work minimizes the central server storage space, improves data security by using unique content-addressable hashes for data verification and also reduces computing power.