Abstract
Several P2P file-sharing networks were successfully deployed and are used by millions of Internet users globally to share files (such as movies, video clips, software systems, e-books, etc.) cooperatively over the Internet. These networks were designed with cooperation in mind, therefore, several incentive mechanisms were devised to encourage cooperation among downloaders and yet the free-riding phenomenon remains a threat to these networks since free-riders could indulge in acts such as whitewashing, Sybil, and collusion attacks to escape penalties imposed by the incentive mechanisms. This paper proposes a share-ratio-based incentive mechanism for P2P file-sharing networks where files are shared via BitTorrent protocol. The proposed incentive mechanism is not prone to Sybil and collusion attacks, and it was designed to simultaneously: (1) encourage cooperation, (2) provide fairness to new downloaders, and (3) deter free-riding while resisting whitewashing attack. The proposed incentive mechanism does not require any central entity to be realized and it was designed in existing terminologies used in P2P file-sharing networks, hence, it is easy to implement. In addition to the accomplishment of the set objectives, the proposed incentive mechanism has successfully deterred free-riding as shown by the experiments conducted.
Highlights
File-sharing applications such as BitTorrent [1], qBittorrent [2], BitComet [3], BitLord [4], μTorrent [5], etc. are used by millions of users globally to download files over the Internet
The proposed share-ratio-based incentive mechanism is meant for public communities since they are more susceptible to free-riding due to their open nature [19]–[21], it can still be used in private communities for data exchange among peers to complement the already existing share-ratio policy
Wang et al in [27], [28], Dong et al in [29], and Mehr in [30] proposed currency-based incentive mechanisms where peers maintain a virtual currency account and their accounts are debited for each service they have received, likewise, their accounts are credited with the virtual currency for each service they have provided
Summary
File-sharing applications such as BitTorrent [1], qBittorrent [2], BitComet [3], BitLord [4], μTorrent [5], etc. are used by millions of users globally to download files over the Internet. Such policy used in private communities leads to the high seed-to-downloader ratio in torrent-sessions, newcomers have to seed for a long time to have their share-ratios above the threshold value, this will, in turn, increase the number of seeds in a session, users may lack the motivation to initiate a new download due to the possibility of long seeding [17], [18]. Unlike the share-ratio policy enforced in private communities, this paper proposes a share-ratio-based incentive scheme that is purely synchronous within the same torrent-session, i.e. peers use their share-ratios generated only in a given torrent-session to exchange data with their neighbors only in that session. The proposed share-ratio-based incentive mechanism is meant for public communities since they are more susceptible to free-riding due to their open nature [19]–[21], it can still be used in private communities for data exchange among peers to complement the already existing share-ratio policy.
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