eSIM and Blockchain from the very beginning: Making IoT more Independent

G+D Mobile Security’s product uses a novel combination of eSIM and blockchain technology. It forms a scalable framework that can be extended from air freight to encompass land and sea operations.

SIGNiT addresses one of the main challenges of digitalization: the dependence of IoT-based business models on the integrity of their data streams. It offers an efficient, scalable, and cost-effective route to undisputable, trusted IoT data, opening the door to many new IoT business models.

Manufacturers of IoT-enabled devices, regardless of whether they are industrial machines or consumer devices, can easily protect connected Industry 4.0 and 5G applications. Insurers can implement scenarios in which IoT data can reliably trigger fully automated payments. In combination with the new 5G standard, SIGNiT has the potential to become a game changer for connected industry and all types of business models that rely on trusted IoT data.

Sealing the damage sensor data cryptographically with Ubirch’s blockchain protocol running on the SIM, only milliseconds after it has been measured, removes doubt and engenders trust within the process because:

• No data package can be changed
• No data package can be deleted
• No data package can be duplicated
• Proof of origin is recorded
• Proof of time is recorded

Our vision is to secure ioT data directly at their source. SigniT from g+D Mobile Security takes this vision to a whole new level. The product offers an easily scalable plug-in solution for powerful ioT security.
_{Stephan Noller, CEO at Ubirc}

Ubirch has developed its Trust Protocol (UTP), to ensure that data from the IoT sensors can’t be falsified after being generated. The data packets are sealed with strong cryptography, making it technically impossible to manipulate them once stored in a blockchain. Ubirch claims that this combination of offering blockchain on a SIM card is the first of its kind.

The solution works like a blockchain that starts at the source of data creation – the IoT sensor. IoT data is sealed by a private key that sits on the SIM card. In the back-end storage, these micro-certificates are saved in a so-called Merkle Tree, a hierarchical structure for distributing large sets of data into manageable smaller parts, and anchored in public blockchains, thus creating an immutable and irrefutable record of a sensor’s output.

As the protocol is bidirectional, an IoT sensor can verify incoming packets for authenticity and integrity, providing protection against unauthorized commands or unknown sources. The benefits for clients are huge as IoT data can be verified whenever it is processed, or new data-driven business models can be deployed, such as smart-contract insurances. Prevention of hacking attacks, like “man in the middle” or packet duplication/suppression, is also a built-in feature because only verifiable packets are processed.

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