Blockchain Data Leakage Detection via Fingerprint Matching
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing data leakage prevention technologies face limitations in detecting and mitigating unauthorized data access when protected data leaves a trusted domain, as they often require sharing sensitive data with third-party solutions, which is undesirable due to privacy concerns, thereby delaying detection of data leaks.
Innovation Solution
A blockchain-based system that generates and stores fingerprints of protected data items, allowing any third-party service to detect unauthorized releases without accessing the actual data, by comparing these fingerprints with external data sources, thereby increasing the likelihood of timely detection and mitigation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Difficulty of detecting and measuring
If protected data items are shared with third-party data leakage detection solutions, then detection capability is improved, but data security and privacy are compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only the essential identifying features of protected data (fingerprints, hashes, metadata) and stores them on the blockchain, while keeping the actual sensitive data private. This allows third parties to perform detection operations on the extracted identifiers without accessing the harmful sensitive content, resolving the contradiction between detection capability and data security.
Solution Approach 2:
The blockchain acts as an intermediary layer between protected data and third-party detection services. Instead of directly sharing sensitive data with third parties, the system uses blockchain-stored fingerprints as a mediator that enables detection while maintaining data security. The blockchain verifies and records detection results without exposing the actual protected data.
2Difficulty of detecting and measuring
If protected data items are shared with third-party solutions, then data leakage detection is enabled, but the time to detect leaks increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by pre-generating and storing data fingerprints on the blockchain before any potential data leakage occurs. When a detection query is made, third parties can immediately compare their findings against the pre-stored fingerprints on the blockchain, eliminating the time delay associated with sharing and processing actual sensitive data with third parties.
3Measurement precision
If actual protected data is used for detection, then detection accuracy is improved, but the complexity of data sharing and trust management increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates simplified copies (fingerprints, hashes) of protected data that retain the essential identifying characteristics needed for accurate detection. These copies are stored on the blockchain and can be freely shared with third parties without trust concerns. The copies maintain detection accuracy while eliminating the complexity of managing trust and security for actual sensitive data sharing.
Data Source
AI summary
Example data leakage detection apparatus disclosed herein include a fingerprinter to generate a first data fingerprint of a first data item accessed from a data source. Disclosed example data leakage detection apparatus also include a blockchain scanner to scan a blockchain to detect whether a first blockchain record includes a second data fingerprint that matches the first data fingerprint of the first data item. Disclosed example data leakage detection apparatus further include a blockchain writer to write a second blockchain record to the blockchain when the second data fingerprint matches the first data fingerprint, the second blockchain record to indicate the first data item is associated with a data leak of a protected data item represented by the second data fingerprint. In some examples, the second blockchain record is to include the first data fingerprint and a first timestamp.