By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
World of SoftwareWorld of SoftwareWorld of Software
  • News
  • Software
  • Mobile
  • Computing
  • Gaming
  • Videos
  • More
    • Gadget
    • Web Stories
    • Trending
    • Press Release
Search
  • Privacy
  • Terms
  • Advertise
  • Contact
Copyright Β© All Rights Reserved. World of Software.
Reading: Inside the TCSC-Based Voting Protocol Powered by Intel SGX | HackerNoon
Share
Sign In
Notification Show More
Font ResizerAa
World of SoftwareWorld of Software
Font ResizerAa
  • Software
  • Mobile
  • Computing
  • Gadget
  • Gaming
  • Videos
Search
  • News
  • Software
  • Mobile
  • Computing
  • Gaming
  • Videos
  • More
    • Gadget
    • Web Stories
    • Trending
    • Press Release
Have an existing account? Sign In
Follow US
  • Privacy
  • Terms
  • Advertise
  • Contact
Copyright Β© All Rights Reserved. World of Software.
World of Software > Computing > Inside the TCSC-Based Voting Protocol Powered by Intel SGX | HackerNoon
Computing

Inside the TCSC-Based Voting Protocol Powered by Intel SGX | HackerNoon

News Room
Last updated: 2025/07/03 at 8:58 AM
News Room Published 3 July 2025
Share
SHARE

Table of Links

Abstract and I. Introduction

II. A Lightning Tour

III. Systematization Methodology

IV. Layer-One Solution

V. Layer-Two Solution

VI. Discussion

VII. Research Challenges

VIII. Concluding Remarks and References

Appendix A. Key Managements

Appendix B. Anonymity and Confidentiality

Appendix C. Background

Appendix D. A TCSC-Based Voting Protocol

APPENDIX D. A TCSC-BASED VOTING PROTOCOL

In this part, we provide a detailed description of TCSCbased voting system that utilizes the Intex SGX. The protocol mainly consists of two sub-procedures: deployment stage and execution stage. We give details as follows.

Deployment Stage. In the deployment stage, all the operational code and the initial state are coded into a TCSC. This stage includes two steps.

Compile. Firstly, contract binary codes are compiled into enclave codes. Since an enclave has only a small quantity of trusted zones for application code and data (the protected memory is 128MB, and only 96MB is usable for an enclave in the current version of Intel SGX [88]), a contract has to determine the boundary of these zones and identify corresponding zones used for privacy-critical functionalities. In particular, the e-voting contract needs to define: the scope of secret states, the scope of public states, the approach to access secret states and the approach to access external states. Enclave Definition Language (EDL) [80] defines trusted components, untrusted components, and corresponding interfaces between them, which takes charge of translation from contract code to enclave code. It provides two

Figure 5: Key Usage in TEE-assisted Confidential Blockchain System.Figure 5: Key Usage in TEE-assisted Confidential Blockchain System.

functionalities: Enclave Calls (ECALLs) and Outside Calls (OCALLs). ECALLs define the functions inside the enclave that are used to expose APIs for untrusted applications to call in. OCALLs specify untrusted functions outside the enclave where the enclave code is able to invoke. In our example, the total number of votes cast for a candidate cannot be revealed until the voting has ended. Thus, the total number of votes cast is defined at the access point ECALLs, and is thereby hidden from the public, and can only be revealed once the voting procedure has been completed.

Load. Afterwards, EDL files will load into an enclave, which is stored in the Enclave Page Cache (EPC). From a micro perspective, the first step is to call the ECREATE instruction for creating an enclave. This will allocate memory inside the Enclave Page Cache (EPC). Then, enclave code and data are added to pages in EPC by calling the EADD instruction. Finally, when the instruction EINIT completes successfully, an enclave’s INIT attributes become true, and the above instructions cannot be used any more. After a successful deployment, the initial state and operational code of this contract will be replicated among blockchain nodes. This means the e-voting logic cannot be changed. But, the state of functionalities can be transferred to parties who have been granted permission with a message-call [2].

Execution Stage. In the execution stage, voters call the deployed TCSC to finish the voting. Firstly, an enclave needs to fetch the current contract state from the blockchain. Then, the CPU executes the plaintext contract in the enclave mode. External attackers cannot obtain the knowledge of sensitive information since the Memory Encryption Engine (MEE) key never leaves TCB. A critical aspect of Intel SGX’s functionality is that the code inside an enclave can access the particular enclave state by performing additional checks on memory semantics. Back to our example, confidential state (the encrypted number of votes cast for a candidate) will return only when the following four requirements are fulfilled:

  • The processor runs in enclave mode;

  • The requested page is part of the same enclave;

  • The page access is through a correct virtual address;

  • The code semantics successfully pass the check.

In a word, the CPU is acting as a doorman in the TCSC, providing a hardware-based access control mechanism. After obtaining results from TEEs, the consensus algorithm starts to reach an agreement. To be specific, when a miner receives a newly mined block, he will re-execute all transactions inside the block to obtain the newly transferred state. Once enough blockchain miners receive the block and re-execute transactions, the voting results and the transactions triggering the contract execution will eventually reach the final agreement. When all the voting procedures have ended, the teller can fetch the final encrypted state and obtain the final voting result. In the meanwhile, the transactions can be used as evidence to trace the voter’s behavior.

Authors:

(1) Rujia Li, Southern University of Science and Technology, China, University of Birmingham, United Kingdom and this author contributed equally to this work;

(2) Qin Wang, CSIRO Data61, Australia and this author contributed equally to this work;

(3) Qi Wang, Southern University of Science and Technology, China;

(4) David Galindo, University of Birmingham, United Kingdom;

(5) Mark Ryan, University of Birmingham, United Kingdom.


Sign Up For Daily Newsletter

Be keep up! Get the latest breaking news delivered straight to your inbox.
By signing up, you agree to our Terms of Use and acknowledge the data practices in our Privacy Policy. You may unsubscribe at any time.
Share This Article
Facebook Twitter Email Print
Share
What do you think?
Love0
Sad0
Happy0
Sleepy0
Angry0
Dead0
Wink0
Previous Article GOP Budget Bill Reduces Student Loan Repayment Options and Limits Borrowing. What You Need to Know
Next Article Samsung seems to have leaked its own trifold phone design
Leave a comment

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Stay Connected

248.1k Like
69.1k Follow
134k Pin
54.3k Follow

Latest News

Today's NYT Mini Crossword Answers for July 4 – CNET
News
The Best Cheap Wi-Fi Routers We’ve Tested (July 2025)
News
The best handheld gaming consoles, from the Nintendo Switch to the Steam Deck
News
πŸ‘¨πŸΏβ€πŸš€ Daily – Starlink sets up shop in Lagos |
Computing

You Might also Like

Computing

πŸ‘¨πŸΏβ€πŸš€ Daily – Starlink sets up shop in Lagos |

14 Min Read
Computing

How I cracked connecting my phone to my smart TV |

8 Min Read
Computing

The HackerNoon Newsletter: Is Generative AI a Blessing in Disguise for Journalism? (7/3/2025) | HackerNoon

3 Min Read
Computing

Perl 5.42 Released With New Operators, Unicode 16 Support, Security Fixes

1 Min Read
//

World of Software is your one-stop website for the latest tech news and updates, follow us now to get the news that matters to you.

Quick Link

  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Advertise
  • Contact

Topics

  • Computing
  • Software
  • Press Release
  • Trending

Sign Up for Our Newsletter

Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!

World of SoftwareWorld of Software
Follow US
Copyright Β© All Rights Reserved. World of Software.
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Lost your password?