Published: August 3, 2020
Author(s)
Temure Saidkhodjaev (University of Maryland), Jeffrey Voas (NIST), Richard Kuhn (NIST), Joanna DeFranco (Penn State University), Phillip Laplante (Penn State University)
Conference
Name: 14th IEEE International Conference on Service-Oriented System Engineering
Dates: 08/03/2020 - 08/06/2020
Location: [Virtual] Oxford, United Kingdom
Citation: 2020 IEEE International Conference on Service Oriented Systems Engineering (SOSE), pp. 1-6
A timestamp is a critical component in many applications, such as proof of transaction ordering or analyzing algorithm performance. This paper reports on a method called Verified Timestamping (VT) that improves the standard timestamp protocol. VT was developed at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) for use in algorithms where timestamp accuracy is critical. VT is an aggregation of the outputs from various atomic clocks to create a Timestamping Authority (TsA). The motivation for this research effort included malicious delay issues in Networks of Things [NIST SP 800-183] as well as race conditions associated with the inclusion of new blocks into blockchains. This paper presents the TsA design and the results of VT, which indicate that atomic clock aggregation is not only possible, but a viable means to produce higher integrity timestamps at the ms level of performance. Tests showed that this is sufficient to preserve event ordering, using only a conventional PC with no dedicated connection or specialized hardware.
A timestamp is a critical component in many applications, such as proof of transaction ordering or analyzing algorithm performance. This paper reports on a method called Verified Timestamping (VT) that improves the standard timestamp protocol. VT was developed at the National Institute of Standards...
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A timestamp is a critical component in many applications, such as proof of transaction ordering or analyzing algorithm performance. This paper reports on a method called Verified Timestamping (VT) that improves the standard timestamp protocol. VT was developed at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) for use in algorithms where timestamp accuracy is critical. VT is an aggregation of the outputs from various atomic clocks to create a Timestamping Authority (TsA). The motivation for this research effort included malicious delay issues in Networks of Things [NIST SP 800-183] as well as race conditions associated with the inclusion of new blocks into blockchains. This paper presents the TsA design and the results of VT, which indicate that atomic clock aggregation is not only possible, but a viable means to produce higher integrity timestamps at the ms level of performance. Tests showed that this is sufficient to preserve event ordering, using only a conventional PC with no dedicated connection or specialized hardware.
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Keywords
timestamp; network of things; performance; blockchain
Control Families
None selected
