Computing without Revealing: A Cryptographic Approach to eProcurement
Abstract
eProcurement processes currently rely on the exchange of prices, intellectual property, and other sensitive information between procurers and suppliers, even though the process may not result in a successful transaction. During the procurement of innovative technology, for example, the procurer needs to reveal his/her requirements to all the suppliers, and the suppliers need to reveal their intellectual property to the procurer for evaluation. The exchange of sensitive information amplifies the threat of data breaches originating from business partners. Such threats, coupled with the reluctance to reveal sensitive information, result in adverse effects on the effectiveness of the procurement mechanism. Most importantly, it increases the cost of procurement of goods and services, which raises the prices for the end consumer, thereby reducing the competitiveness of the US manufacturing industry. Existing techniques for secure multi-party computations are associated with tremendous computational costs, making them unsuitable for real and sophisticated eProcurement processes. The primary research question in this proposal, which is aimed at addressing this fundamental challenge, is: How can procurers and suppliers securely conduct their business transactions without revealing their confidential information? The project will be directed by principal investigators (PIs) Prof. Jitesh H. Panchal and Prof. Mikhail J. Atallah at Purdue University. The project will build on PIs prior work on secure computing protocols that enable secure and efficient computations on confidential data held by different parties. The central hypothesis in this investigation is that the computing-without-revealing approach can be extended to real and sophisticated eProcurement processes. The hypothesis will be tested by extending the secure computing protocols to different eProcurement scenarios such as second-price auctions for standard products, and two-stage information aggregation auctions for innovative technology. The feasibility of the resulting designs will be demonstrated using a proof-of-concept prototype, and their benefits evaluated through a platform for online procurement. Since the approach mitigates the fear of loss of confidential information, it is expected to encourage truthful revelation by suppliers and procurers. In addition to the design and evaluation of innovative protocols, the team will also investigate the behavioral implications of computing without revealing through laboratory experiments. The proposed investigation will advance the state of the knowledge in secure multi-party computations in general and confidentiality preserving eProcurement in particular. The proposed eProcurement paradigm is expected to have significant benefit for both the US manufacturing sector and for consumers. It would result in lowering the acquisition costs for procurers ranging from small and medium sized enterprises to large corporations, which would in turn result in lower prices of products for the end consumers.
Document Details
- Document Type
- DoD Grant Award
- Publication Date
- Jan 03, 2017
- Source ID
- N002441710009
Entities
People
- Jitesh Panchal
Organizations
- United States Navy
- University of Virginia