Blockchain-Enabled Efficient Dynamic Cross-Domain Deduplication in Edge Computing

As the rapid proliferation of Internet of Things (IoT) and edge computing, large amounts of data are needed to be stored and transmitted in the online storage system. Data deduplication can be adopted to improve communication efficiency and minimize storage space. However, in edge computing, data deduplication brings security and functionality requirements that are still unsatisfied. Most existing schemes are vulnerable to brute-force attacks and single-point attacks. Moreover, they impose a heavy burden on resource-constrained edge nodes and do not support cross-domain deduplication. Blockchain is a promising technology because the programmable smart contract can be utilized to perform cross-domain deduplication and guarantee the traceability of data. In this article, an efficient dynamic cross-domain deduplication scheme in blockchain-enabled edge computing is proposed to solve the above problems. Specifically, the smart contract is employed to assist cross-domain deduplication, which also can reduce the storage pressure of edge nodes. Meanwhile, a hash proof system-based oblivious pseudorandom function is created to reduce the time cost of key generation and achieve the security requirements of resistance to brute-force attacks and single-point attacks. The technology of accumulators is adopted to achieve Proofs of Ownership (PoO), which can prevent duplicate-faking attacks. The security analysis demonstrates that the proposed scheme has a higher security level. The performance evaluation shows that the proposed scheme significantly reduces computation cost and communication overhead, compared with other existing schemes. The smart contract is implemented in the Ethereum test network (i.e., Rinkeby), which shows acceptable gas cost even the functions are called frequently.