[Paper Review] An Auditability, Transparent, and Privacy-Preserving for Supply Chain Traceability Based on Blockchain

Bora Buğra Sezer, Selçuk Topal+1 more|arXiv (Cornell University)|Mar 18, 2021

Blockchain Technology Applications and Security22 references4 citations

TL;DR

This paper proposes a blockchain-based framework for supply chain traceability that ensures auditability, transparency, and privacy preservation using smart contracts and cryptographic techniques. By leveraging digital signatures and zero-knowledge proofs, the system enables stakeholders to verify product claims via a single product ID while protecting sensitive data, achieving real-time, tamper-proof traceability without relying on centralized authorities.

ABSTRACT

Traceability and auditability are key structures that are vital in supply chain management and construction. However, trust is the most important aspect of customers in these systems. Also, we have to rely on third parties to trade in centralized systems. Although current exist frameworks for these solutions in the supply chain, these have work poor traceability and lack of real-time information, and especially lack of privacy-preserving. In this paper, we propose a privacy-preserving framework for supply chain traceability that using smart contracts. Development processes, model implementation, and smart contracts are presented in detail and we show cryptographic techniques in these technologies to address the aforementioned. Finally, thanks to traceability and auditability, customers and other parties can view with a single product ID and also verified with digital signature the claims of the actors in the system.

Motivation & Objective

• To address the lack of trust and privacy in centralized supply chain systems.
• To overcome limitations in existing traceability frameworks, such as poor real-time data access and insufficient privacy protection.
• To design a decentralized system that ensures end-to-end auditability and transparency without exposing sensitive business data.
• To integrate cryptographic primitives like digital signatures and zero-knowledge proofs into smart contracts for secure and verifiable traceability.
• To enable customers and auditors to verify supply chain claims using only a product ID and cryptographic proofs.

Proposed method

• The framework uses a permissioned blockchain to record supply chain events in a tamper-evident manner.
• Smart contracts are implemented to automate and enforce traceability rules across supply chain actors.
• Digital signatures are used to authenticate and verify claims made by participants in the supply chain.
• Zero-knowledge proofs (ZKPs) are employed to validate data integrity without revealing sensitive information, such as transaction amounts or supplier identities.
• Each product is assigned a unique ID that maps to its entire history on the blockchain, enabling full traceability.
• Cryptographic techniques ensure data confidentiality while maintaining verifiability and auditability for authorized parties.

Experimental results

Research questions

• RQ1 How can supply chain traceability be made both transparent and privacy-preserving in a decentralized environment?
• RQ2 What cryptographic mechanisms can ensure auditability without exposing sensitive business data?
• RQ3 How can smart contracts be used to enforce trustless verification of supply chain claims?
• RQ4 To what extent can zero-knowledge proofs enhance privacy in a blockchain-based supply chain system?
• RQ5 Can a single product ID enable full, verifiable traceability across multiple actors while preserving confidentiality?

Key findings

• The proposed framework enables real-time, end-to-end traceability of products using a single product ID and cryptographic verification.
• Digital signatures ensure that all claims made by supply chain actors are authentic and tamper-proof.
• Zero-knowledge proofs allow verification of data integrity without disclosing underlying sensitive information, preserving privacy.
• The system achieves auditability through a transparent, immutable blockchain ledger accessible to authorized parties.
• Smart contracts automate and enforce traceability rules, reducing reliance on third-party intermediaries.
• The integration of cryptographic techniques into smart contracts ensures both security and verifiability across the supply chain.