NextGen Authentication: A Secure Blockchain-Based Protocol for Content-Centric Networks With Soulbound Tokens

Content-Centric Networking (CCN) aims to meet the demand for content access and distribution by securing content rather than connections. However, content cached in CCN routers is vulnerable to malicious attacks and unauthorized access. Existing authentication and access control protocols often suffer from issues such as single points of failure and inadequate protection against sophisticated attacks. To address these security and integrity concerns, we propose a blockchain-based authentication protocol using soulbound tokens (SBTs). The protocol links the consumer to a secure crypto wallet, serving as a repository for authentication information. The content provider mints and distributes SBTs via blockchain, ensuring proof-of-authenticity and ownership. This blockchain-based approach eliminates single points of failure and provides a decentralized, tamper-proof method for authentication. Smart contracts for the protocol, developed in Solidity and deployed on a zk-EVM enabled blockchain, provide privacy-preserving authentication. Security analysis using AVISPA confirms the protocol’s robustness against various CCN threats, including denial-of-service and unauthorized access. Performance evaluation demonstrates the protocol’s computational efficiency and feasibility for CCN environments, maintaining low latency and resource usage while enhancing security.