The Unresolved Need for Dependable Guarantees on Security, Sovereignty, and Trust in Data Ecosystems

Lohmöller, Johannes; Pennekamp, Jan; Matzutt, Roman; Schneider, Carolin Victoria; Vlad, Eduard; Trautwein, Christian; Wehrle, Klaus

doi:10.1016/j.datak.2024.102301

VeSiTRUST — Dependable Security Guarantees for Businesses in Value Creation Systems

Digital, networked platforms have transformed consumer markets in recent years. Based on innovative business models, they enhance consumer benefits and generate innovation gains for companies involved in the platform. While platform-based value creation is widespread in the consumer segment, it is just beginning in the industrial sector. In digital value networks, established supplier relationships are increasingly replaced by dynamic, short-term collaborations, reducing trust built over years. This affects product quality, delivery times, standards, data security, and intellectual property protection, especially critical on platforms facilitating competitor collaboration. The VeSiTRUST project focuses on understanding trust in these networks from a computer science perspective, exploring how Privacy-Enhancing Technologies (PETs), like hardware-based protections and software-based encryption, can secure sensitive data and address concerns about platform use.

The project analyzes existing value systems' trust networks and processes, identify shortcomings, and assess improvement potential. It aims to ensure data is effectively protected and efficiently utilized, exploring PETs to identify suitable technologies and evaluate their influence on platform acceptance. A local platform will be set up to simulate stakeholders and data, testing selected PETs for usability. Successful project completion will contribute to establishing secure data-oriented value creation, raising awareness among German companies about the importance of reliable technical guarantees in dynamic systems, and potentially leading to new approaches for collaborative exchange and standards in secure systems.