CoviChain: A Blockchain Based Framework for Nonrepudiable Contact Tracing in Healthcare Cyber-Physical Systems During...

Area of Science:

• Computer Science
• Medical Informatics
• Cybersecurity

Background:

• The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the need for secure and efficient methods to manage sensitive health data.
• Internet-of-Medical-Things (IoMT) devices offer potential for data collection and contact tracing but raise privacy concerns.
• Existing systems often struggle with secure data handling, storage capacity, and unauthorized third-party access.

Purpose of the Study:

• To propose CoviChain, a novel system for secure and private transfer of COVID-19 patient data.
• To leverage off-chain distributed storage and blockchain technology for enhanced data management.
• To address security and privacy issues while optimizing data storage and transfer efficiency.

Main Methods:

• Implemented an off-chain distributed storage solution using InterPlanetary File Systems (IPFS) for large medical datasets.
• Utilized a blockchain implementation with smart contracts for secure data transfer from infected individuals to hospital systems via edge infrastructure.
• Employed a double hashing mechanism to ensure data integrity and privacy.

Main Results:

• CoviChain successfully demonstrated secure and private transfer of COVID-19 related data.
• The system achieved efficient large-scale data storage on the blockchain.
• Reduced costs and time associated with data transfer and storage were observed.

Conclusions:

• CoviChain provides a robust solution for managing sensitive health information in the context of pandemics.
• The integration of IPFS and blockchain technology enhances data security, privacy, and storage efficiency.
• This approach offers a scalable and cost-effective model for future IoMT healthcare applications.