Assessing the Performance of Ethereum and Hyperledger Fabric Under DDoS Attacks for Cyber-Physical Systems

Jayadev, Vijay; Moradpoor, Naghmeh; Petrovski, Andrei

Abstract

Blockchain technology offers a decentralized and secure platform for addressing various challenges in smart cities and cyber-physical systems, including identity management, trust and transparency, and supply chain management. However, blockchains are susceptible to a variety of threats, akin to any other technological system. To assess the resilience and robustness of diverse blockchain technologies, this study evaluates their performance indicators under various attack scenarios. Therefore, this study conducts a thorough examination of multiple well-known blockchain technologies, such as Ethereum and Hyperledger Fabric, under Distributed Denial of Service attack scenarios. Ethereum, introduced as a revolutionary blockchain technology, has entirely transformed the way smart contracts and decentralized applications operate. Additionally, the innovative open-source blockchain framework, Hyperledger Fabric, is intended for businesses and alliances seeking a secure and adaptable platform to develop distributed ledger applications. Hyperledger Besu, an Ethereum client with an extractable Ethereum Virtual Machine implementation designed to be enterprise-friendly for both public and private permissioned network use cases. Therefore, Ethereum and Hyperledger Fabric are utilized in this study for performance comparison. This study provides a summary of Ethereum’s salient characteristics, architecture, and noteworthy influence on the blockchain and cryptocurrency ecosystem. Furthermore, it offers an overview of the main characteristics, architecture, and potential uses of Hyperledger Fabric. The blockchain’s resilience against DDoS attacks is assessed by examining performance measures such as latency and throughput, which are fundamental metrics crucial for evaluating and enhancing the effectiveness of various systems, including communication protocols, databases, blockchains, and computer networks. The outcomes of these experiments show that Hyperledger Fabric has greater throughput and reduced latency, demonstrating its resistance to DDoS attacks in comparison with Ethereum. Ethereum, being a permissionless blockchain, can introduce challenges such as the potential for network congestion and scalability issues.

Citation

Jayadev, V., Moradpoor, N., & Petrovski, A. (2024, July). Assessing the Performance of Ethereum and Hyperledger Fabric Under DDoS Attacks for Cyber-Physical Systems. Paper presented at 19th International Conference on Availability, Reliability and Security (ARES 2024), Vienna, Austria

• Presentation Conference Type: Conference Paper (unpublished)
• Conference Name: 19th International Conference on Availability, Reliability and Security (ARES 2024)
• Start Date: Jul 30, 2024
• End Date: Aug 2, 2024
• Acceptance Date: May 31, 2024
• Online Publication Date: Jul 30, 2024
• Publication Date: 2024-07
• Deposit Date: May 31, 2024
• Publicly Available Date: Jul 30, 2024
• Publisher: Association for Computing Machinery (ACM)
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Book Title: ARES '24: Proceedings of the 19th International Conference on Availability, Reliability and Security
• ISBN: 9798400717185
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1145/3664476.3670927
• Keywords: Ethereum Virtual Machine, Hyperledger Fabric, Distributed Denial of Service, Distributed Ledger Technology, Smart Contract
• External URL: https://www.ares-conference.eu/