Feature Papers in Blockchains 2025

A special issue of Blockchains (ISSN 2813-5288).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2025 | Viewed by 998

Special Issue Editors

School of Cyberspace Science and Technology, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, China
Interests: cyber security; cloud computing; edge computing; blockchain
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Guest Editor
School of Cyberspace Science and Technology, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, China
Interests: Internet of Things (IoT) security; applied cryptography; network security; computer security
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to announce this Special Issue entitled "Feature Papers in Blockchains 2025". This Special Issue will be a collection of high-quality papers from Editorial Board Members, Guest Editors, and leading researchers invited by the Editorial Office. Both original research articles and comprehensive review papers are welcome. All topics related to blockchain in various fields and applications are welcome. 

Dr. Keke Gai
Prof. Dr. Liehuang Zhu
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Blockchains is an international peer-reviewed open access quarterly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1000 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • blockchain and distributed ledger technology implementation
  • blockchain and cryptography
  • blockchain and digital currency
  • blockchain in finance
  • blockchain in management
  • Bitcoin and Ethereum
  • new applications of blockchain
  • emerging technologies and developments of blockchain
  • blockchain theory
  • blockchain for data exchange
  • non-fungible tokens (NFTs)
  • new architecture, frameworks, or models of blockchain
  • security and privacy in blockchain
  • blockchain advances in the 6G network
  • smart contract methods
  • blockchain-based business models
  • data governance in blockchain
  • blockchain and secure critical infrastructure
  • blockchain in the metaverse
  • cross-chain techniques
  • attacks and threats on blockchain

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

32 pages, 694 KiB  
Article
Preserving Whistleblower Anonymity Through Zero-Knowledge Proofs and Private Blockchain: A Secure Digital Evidence Management Framework
by Butrus Mbimbi, David Murray and Michael Wilson
Blockchains 2025, 3(2), 7; https://doi.org/10.3390/blockchains3020007 - 17 Apr 2025
Viewed by 353
Abstract
This research presents a novel framework and experimental results that combine zero-knowledge proofs (ZKPs) with private blockchain technology to safeguard whistleblower privacy while ensuring secure digital evidence submission and verification. For example, whistleblowers involved in corporate fraud cases can submit sensitive financial records [...] Read more.
This research presents a novel framework and experimental results that combine zero-knowledge proofs (ZKPs) with private blockchain technology to safeguard whistleblower privacy while ensuring secure digital evidence submission and verification. For example, whistleblowers involved in corporate fraud cases can submit sensitive financial records anonymously while maintaining the credibility of the evidence. The proposed framework introduces several key innovations, including a private blockchain implementation utilising proof-of-work (PoW) consensus to ensure immutable storage and thorough scrutiny of submitted evidence, with mining difficulty dynamically aligned to the sensitivity of the data. It also features an adaptive difficulty mechanism that automatically adjusts computational requirements based on the sensitivity of the evidence, providing tailored protection levels. In addition, a unique two-phase validation process is incorporated, which generates a digital signature from the evidence alongside random challenges, significantly improving security and authenticity. The integration of ZKPs enables iterative hash-based verification between parties (Prover and Verifier) while maintaining the complete privacy of the source data. This research investigates the whistleblower’s niche in traditional digital evidence management systems (DEMSs), prioritising privacy without compromising evidence integrity. Experimental results demonstrate the framework’s effectiveness in preserving anonymity while assuring the authenticity of the evidence, making it useful for judicial systems and organisations handling sensitive disclosures. This paper signifies notable progress in secure whistleblowing systems, offering a way to juggle transparency with informant confidentiality. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Feature Papers in Blockchains 2025)
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