Application of Distributed Systems in Whistleblowing A feasibility study of a decentralized whistleblowing platform

Kein Vorschaubild vorhanden
Autor:innen
Autor:in (Körperschaft)
Publikationsdatum
2020
Typ der Arbeit
Master
Studiengang
Typ
11 - Studentische Arbeit
Herausgeber:innen
Herausgeber:in (Körperschaft)
Betreuer:in
Übergeordnetes Werk
Themenheft
DOI der Originalpublikation
Link
Reihe / Serie
Reihennummer
Jahrgang / Band
Ausgabe / Nummer
Seiten / Dauer
Patentnummer
Verlag / Herausgebende Institution
Hochschule für Wirtschaft FHNW
Verlagsort / Veranstaltungsort
Olten
Auflage
Version
Programmiersprache
Abtretungsempfänger:in
Praxispartner:in/Auftraggeber:in
Zusammenfassung
Whistleblowing is an effective tool to fight corruption and expose wrongdoing in governments and corporations. Insiders who are willing to come forward and report misconduct, called whistleblowers, often seek to reach a recipient who can disseminate the relevant information to the public. However, whistleblowers face many challenges to protect themselves from retaliation when using the existing centralized whistleblowing platforms. This study discusses several associated risks of whistleblowing when using the existing centralized whistleblowing platforms. Then, this study proposes an alternative, decentralized, software-based solution to mitigate these risks. Following the Design Science Research Methodology (DSRM), this study presents a prototype of a whistleblowing platform in which whistleblowers can share their disclosures anonymously in a marketplace-like manner. The developed prototype consists of a combination of distributed systems, namely Blockchain, Smart Contracts, Distributed File Synchronization and Sharing (DFSS), and Distributed Domain Name systems (DDNS). Client-side encryption was utilized to secure the communication between the whistleblowers and third parties. Domain experts then evaluated this prototype and confirmed that the prototype fulfills the requirements to mitigate the risks of whistleblowing compared to the existing platforms. Simultaneously, one expert held concerns about the selected public blockchain, namely Ethereum, and recommended the use of more privacy-preserving blockchains.
Schlagwörter
Fachgebiet (DDC)
330 - Wirtschaft
Projekt
Veranstaltung
Startdatum der Ausstellung
Enddatum der Ausstellung
Startdatum der Konferenz
Enddatum der Konferenz
Datum der letzten Prüfung
ISBN
ISSN
Sprache
Englisch
Während FHNW Zugehörigkeit erstellt
Ja
Zukunftsfelder FHNW
Publikationsstatus
Begutachtung
Open Access-Status
Lizenz
Zitation
HABBABEH, Ali, 2020. Application of Distributed Systems in Whistleblowing A feasibility study of a decentralized whistleblowing platform. Olten: Hochschule für Wirtschaft FHNW. Verfügbar unter: https://irf.fhnw.ch/handle/11654/40349