Integrating Proof of Stake and Trust Framework for Blockchain-Based E-voting in Ubiquitous Social Networking

Abstract

Recent advancements in blockchain (BC) technology have paved the way for innovative applications like electronic voting. Traditional consensus mechanisms, such as proof-of-work (PoW) employed in Bitcoin, have raised concerns about energy consumption and the flexibility of voting systems. Existing research predominantly focuses on trust assessment from a centralized perspective, which proves challenging due to the dynamic nature of pervasive social networking (PSN) structures and their attributes. This study introduces a novel approach utilizing blockchain for trust evaluation within the PSN-centric BC environment. The proposed model, termed Hybrid Proof of Stake-Trust (PST) BC, synergistically combines proof-of-trust (PoT) and proof-of-stake (PoS) mechanisms to address the prevailing issues in e-voting. Notably, trust evaluation is made public and transparent across all PSN nodes, as each participates in the verification process.A notable feature of this approach is the introduction of dedicated trust evaluation blocks during the process of block generation, facilitated by sharding to distribute workloads efficiently among rapidly functioning network nodes. Consequently, this model ensures the precision and security of voting results, solidifying its role in safeguarding the election process.The integration of the proof-of-stake-trust BC model enhances security measures, significantly boosting the adaptability and overall performance of the BC-based voting framework. This fortified system offers a secure platform for governmental elections, preserving the integrity of the democratic process.Empirical results underscore the effectiveness of the proposed PST-BC model, exhibiting superior latency performance, clocking in at 15/s.