Group Membership Block Chain for Decentralized Authorization
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for confidential group communication fail to effectively manage dynamic, decentralized, and self-organizing groups, lacking a reliable construct for establishing, updating, and securing group membership, which is crucial for secure key sharing and authorization.
Innovation Solution
A Group Membership Block Chain (GMBC) system that uses an ordered list of data blocks to create a tamper-resistant chronological record of group membership updates, allowing for ad-hoc and decentralized group definition, dynamic membership updates, and secure sharing of encrypted content, utilizing multi-recipient encryption and public key authentication to ensure authorization and tamper resistance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If traditional key sharing mechanisms are used for confidential group communication, then key distribution can be achieved, but the system cannot effectively manage dynamic, decentralized, and self-organizing groups
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the group membership management into discrete, immutable blocks that are chained together. Each block represents a specific membership state or transition, allowing the system to handle dynamic group changes while maintaining security through the segmented, verifiable structure of the blockchain.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements dynamic membership management by allowing new blocks to be continuously added to the chain, representing real-time changes in group composition. The system dynamically adapts to group changes while maintaining security through the immutable nature of previous blocks, enabling decentralized and self-organizing group behavior.
2Adaptability or versatility
If group membership is made dynamic and decentralized, then adaptability improves, but tamper resistance and security may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-hashing each membership block and chaining it to the previous block before any potential tampering can occur. This preliminary cryptographic binding ensures that any subsequent attempt to modify membership data would break the chain's integrity, providing built-in tamper resistance from the outset.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements feedback through the cryptographic hash chain structure, where each block contains a hash of the previous block. This creates a continuous feedback loop that automatically detects any tampering attempts, as modifications to any block would invalidate all subsequent blocks in the chain, providing real-time security verification.
3Reliability
If an ordered list of data blocks is used to track membership updates, then tamper resistance improves, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies universality by designing the blockchain structure to serve multiple functions simultaneously: it tracks membership changes, provides tamper evidence, enables decentralized verification, and maintains chronological order. This multi-functional design reduces overall system complexity by consolidating multiple security and management functions into a single unified structure.
Data Source
AI summary
A system and method for achieving authorization in confidential group communications in terms of an ordered list of data blocks representing a tamper-resistant chronological account of group membership updates. This method permits ad-hoc and decentralized group definition, dynamic and decentralized membership updates, open sharing, tamper resistance, and tracking of membership history. There are many applications of these techniques. One such application is enabling end-to-end encryption of instant messaging, content sharing, and streamed media.