Zero‐knowledge‐based distributed auditing protocol

Abstract

Blockchain‐based data outsourcing has attracted a huge deal of attention in recent years. However, key management and reliance on pre‐defined or randomly‐selected third‐party auditors (TPAs) are still challenging owing to refusing to collaborate or break auditing policies. Additionally, it is impossible to store secrets in smart contracts (SCs) for signing or auditing. Thus, in the present study, a zero‐knowledge (ZK)‐based distributed auditing protocol (DAP) is provided. In this protocol, a user‐based key generation mechanism offers users security against curious authorities based on no TPA causing them to reveal no knowledge about under‐auditing data. Based on Pointcheval's and Sanders's signature scheme, as a ZK‐based randomizable signature applied in an SC to handle the auditing process, the proposed DAP provides confidential transactions and user accountability. Evaluation indicates that the proposed ZK‐based DAP is efficient for the user side and it is the fastest DAP in the blockchain.