AquaTrace: Secure Federated Identifiers for Product Tracing using Blockchain

Abstract

This thesis proposes a secure and resilient system for generating and managing unique identification number series for tracing food products within the Norwegian fishing industry, without relying on a central authority. Given the context of mutual mistrust among stakeholders and the threat of hostile entities, this project proposes a blockchain-based solution to ensure the uniqueness and security of each ID in a decentralized environment. The core of this research involves designing and implementing a smart contract on an Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM)-compatible blockchain to manage the ID series efficiently. The thesis begins with an analysis of current industry standards and reviews existing blockchain applications for product tracing, forming the basis for the proposed ID scheme and data models. The practical aspect includes developing a smart contract for ID generation and management, highlighting the application's ability to prevent ID collisions and ensure secure, verifiable IDs. The thesis also includes the design and implementation of a Web3 application, serving as an interface for users to interact with the blockchain system. This application facilitates the generation and management of ID series, and extends to include product tracing functionalities. This research aims to demonstrate the feasibility and effectiveness of using blockchain technology and smart contracts to enhance the traceability and security of food products in the fishing industry.