International Journal of Networked and Distributed Computing

Volume 9, Issue 2-3, July 2021, Pages 86 - 93

Bountychain: Toward Decentralizing a Bug Bounty Program with Blockchain and IPFS

Authors
Alex Hoffman*, Phillipe Austria, Chol Hyun Park, Yoohwan Kim
Howared Hughes School of Engineering, Department of Computer Science, University of Nevada, 4505 S. Maryland Parkway, Las Vegas, NV 89154, USA
*Corresponding author. Email: alex.hoffman@unlv.edu
Corresponding Author
Alex Hoffman
Received 22 February 2021, Accepted 25 May 2021, Available Online 14 June 2021.
DOI
10.2991/ijndc.k.210527.001How to use a DOI?
Keywords
Bug bounty; blockchain; IPFS; decentralized apps; DApps
Abstract

Bug Bounty Programs (BBPs) play an important role in providing and maintaining security in software applications. These programs allow testers to discover and resolve bugs before the general public is aware of them, preventing incidents of widespread abuse. However, they have shown problems such as organizations providing accountability of reporting bugs and nonrecognition of testers. In this paper, we discuss Bountychain, a decentralized application using Ethereum-based Smart Contracts (SCs) and the Interplanetary File System (IPFS), a distributed file storage system. Blockchain and SCs provide a safe, secure and transparent platform for a BBP. Testers can submit bug reports and organizations can accept or reject the defect via the SCs. Transactions on the blockchain serve as a persistent and transparent record of software bugs, while IPFS serves as a long-term storage system for bug details. Thus, Bountychain ensures organization accountability and allows testers to gain irrefutable recognition.

Copyright
© 2021 The Authors. Published by Atlantis Press B.V.
Open Access
This is an open access article distributed under the CC BY-NC 4.0 license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/).

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Journal
International Journal of Networked and Distributed Computing
Volume-Issue
9 - 2-3
Pages
86 - 93
Publication Date
2021/06/14
ISSN (Online)
2211-7946
ISSN (Print)
2211-7938
DOI
10.2991/ijndc.k.210527.001How to use a DOI?
Copyright
© 2021 The Authors. Published by Atlantis Press B.V.
Open Access
This is an open access article distributed under the CC BY-NC 4.0 license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/).

Cite this article

TY  - JOUR
AU  - Alex Hoffman
AU  - Phillipe Austria
AU  - Chol Hyun Park
AU  - Yoohwan Kim
PY  - 2021
DA  - 2021/06/14
TI  - Bountychain: Toward Decentralizing a Bug Bounty Program with Blockchain and IPFS
JO  - International Journal of Networked and Distributed Computing
SP  - 86
EP  - 93
VL  - 9
IS  - 2-3
SN  - 2211-7946
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/ijndc.k.210527.001
DO  - 10.2991/ijndc.k.210527.001
ID  - Hoffman2021
ER  -