Post-Quantum Linkable Hash-Based Ring Signature Scheme for Off-Chain Payments in IoT

Area of Science:

• Blockchain Technology
• Cryptography
• Internet of Things (IoT)

Background:

• Off-chain payments in IoT improve blockchain scalability but face privacy challenges like channel disclosure and traceability.
• Quantum computing poses a significant threat to current public key cryptography, necessitating post-quantum secure privacy solutions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To propose a novel post-quantum secure privacy-enhancing scheme for off-chain IoT payments.
• To address the limitations of existing privacy mechanisms against quantum attacks and transaction traceability.

Main Methods:

• Development of a post-quantum ring signature scheme utilizing hash functions for enhanced anonymity and linkability.
• Integration of a Signature of Knowledge (SOK) into an improved Hash Time-Locked Contract (HTLC) to conceal payment paths.

Main Results:

• The proposed scheme offers robust protection against quantum attacks through hash-based signatures.
• The system successfully prevents double spending while maintaining linkability for auditing.
• Experimental evaluations confirm a favorable balance between privacy, computational efficiency, and security.

Conclusions:

• The developed post-quantum ring signature scheme significantly enhances privacy and security for off-chain IoT payments.
• The improved HTLC with SOK provides stronger privacy protection by concealing payment paths.
• The findings offer valuable insights into privacy-preserving techniques for future post-quantum secure blockchains.