Cybersecurity Considerations in Blockchain-Based Solutions

Blockchain technology has a reputation for providing a higher level of assurance and security than other information systems. However, many design decisions, implementation realities, limitations, and trade-offs can create underlying vulnerabilities in blockchain-based solutions that are exploitable by malicious attackers. This chapter discusses some of the most common vulnerabilities in blockchain-based solutions that can arise in the context of life sciences research. For each of these vulnerabilities, mitigating strategies are proposed to address the identified risk. These mitigating strategies reduce the likelihood and impact of the occurrence and, thereby, bring the cybersecurity risk to an acceptable level. Like any other information system, securing a blockchain-based solution requires a holistic, contextual, and risk-based approach that investigates all possible attack vectors and contextually evaluates their potential harm.

Defense-in-depth, Threats, Vulnerabilities, Risk, Life sciences, Blockchain technology, Smart contracts

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