Blockchain Feedback Mixing for Anonymous Verified Submissions
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing blockchain-based systems face challenges in preserving user privacy and data integrity, particularly in applications like electronic voting and feedback submission, as data submissions can be traced back to their sources, compromising the integrity of the process.
Innovation Solution
A blockchain-based data submissions protocol (BDSP) that employs secret sharing and mixing services to encrypt and anonymize data submissions, using commitment channels and token mixing techniques to delink inputs from outputs, ensuring only valid submissions are verified and recorded on the blockchain.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If data submissions are recorded on a blockchain network, then data integrity and immutability are improved, but user privacy and anonymity deteriorate as submissions can be traced back to their sources
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the data submission process into multiple independent components: (1) data generation by users, (2) encryption using distributed keys stored on blockchain, (3) mixing through multiple intermediary nodes, and (4) final decryption and verification. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently - encryption ensures integrity while mixing preserves anonymity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces multiple intermediary elements: (1) distributed encryption keys stored on blockchain that act as mediators between users and data, (2) mixing nodes that intermediate the transmission path, and (3) verification nodes that mediate the validation process. These intermediaries decouple the direct link between user identity and data submission, preserving anonymity while maintaining integrity.
2Loss of information
If mixing services are used to anonymize data submissions, then user privacy is improved, but system complexity and verification difficulty worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic verification where the verification process adapts based on the mixing depth and encryption layering. The system dynamically adjusts verification strategies - for shallow mixing, direct verification is used, while for deep mixing, probabilistic verification and cryptographic proof mechanisms are employed. This dynamic approach manages complexity while maintaining strong privacy protections.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent incorporates feedback mechanisms where verification nodes provide cryptographic proofs back to the network about the validity of mixed data. This feedback loop allows the system to verify anonymized data without requiring complex manual inspection - the cryptographic feedback automatically confirms integrity, managing system complexity through automated verification.
3Loss of information
If encryption and mixing techniques are applied to data submissions, then anonymity is improved, but data verification and validation become more difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-distributing encryption keys to users and storing them on the blockchain before any data submission occurs. This preliminary setup enables later verification without adding complexity to the actual submission process - the keys are already in place to encrypt and verify data, making the verification process straightforward despite the use of encryption and mixing.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces manual or mechanical verification processes with cryptographic verification mechanisms. Instead of requiring human inspection of mixed data, the system uses cryptographic signatures, hash verification, and blockchain-based proof mechanisms that automatically validate data integrity. This substitution makes verification easier and more reliable despite the complexity introduced by encryption and mixing.
Data Source
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AI summary
A computer-implemented method for submitting feedback for an entity to a blockchain is disclosed. The method, which is implemented at one of a plurality of participating nodes, includes: obtaining a first key, the first key being one of a fixed set of keys distributed to participating nodes that are eligible to submit feedback for the entity; generating first feedback (rj) of the entity for submission to the blockchain; encrypting the first feedback (rj) using at least the first key; and submitting the encrypted first feedback to a mixing service, the mixing service being configured to generate a mixed transaction based on the encrypted first feedback and at least one other encrypted feedback submission from one or more eligible participating nodes.