User authentication using blockchain based smart contract in role-based access control

Abstract

Since the last few decades, information security has become a significant challenge for organizations’ system administrators. However, the Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) model has emerged as a viable solution for organizations to meet the security requirement due to its less administrative overhead. Blockchain technology is distributive and can be used effectively in user authentication and authorization challenges. This paper proposes an RBAC model using a blockchain-based smart contract for managing user-role permissions in the organization. We design a threat and security model to resist attacks such as man-in-themiddle attacks in an organization scenario. The proposed approach uses the Ethereum blockchain platform and its smart contract functionalities to model user-resource communications. The proposed method is tested on Ropsten Ethereum Test Network and evaluated to analyze user authentication, verification, cost, and security.