IoTxWeb3: lifecycle management and data sharing for Internet of Things (IoT) devices

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Background

Network-connected devices are now used in many places, from homes to factories and vehicles. Some of these devices are managed by trained professionals, while others are operated by ordinary users.

For professional systems, maintenance and lifecycle management are often organized as part of a business process. For consumer Internet of Things (IoT) devices, however, users are usually expected to rely on manuals and software updates to keep devices secure.

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The problem

Device logs, sensor readings, and operational data are often collected and reused without the owner clearly seeing how. Manufacturers may put such data to use for monitoring or AI training, while the users themselves have little control or access.

Even when owners do want to share or reuse data from their own devices, the interfaces and permissions needed to do so are frequently unclear or simply not available.

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Our approach

We are developing a software framework that combines Internet of Things (IoT) devices with Web3 technologies such as blockchain and smart contracts. The goal is to automate device lifecycle management and data sharing in a verifiable way.

Users can grant permissions to manufacturers or third parties, and those permissions are recorded and enforced through smart contracts. By leaving a trace of agreements on the blockchain, the framework improves transparency and accountability.

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Achievements so far

The starting point was a blockchain-based secure software update framework for IoT devices (2018); its extended version received an excellent paper award at DICOMO 2022. Managing a device's whole life on a distributed ledger became the prototype for this theme.

The scope has since widened to data sharing. Recent results include access control that anonymizes account information with zero-knowledge proofs (Electronics, 2025), authentication and metadata search based on self-sovereign identity (BCCA 2025), PPDS, a privacy-preserving data sharing model for e-health (BCCA 2025), and flexible edge processing in a blockchain-based IoT data distribution framework (PerCom workshop, 2025) — the building blocks of the IoTxWeb3 framework.

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Why this matters

As this framework spreads, device owners can see for themselves who uses their data and decide how far to allow it, rather than leaving everything to manufacturers.

Manufacturers benefit too: with permissions recorded in a verifiable form, they can build data-driven services while keeping users' trust. The goal is an IoT where devices keep creating value throughout their lives, not only at the point of sale.

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Where we are heading

We aim at a decentralized data-sharing infrastructure in which the rights over devices, data, and services are managed automatically by smart contracts, so that individuals and companies can bring their data together with confidence.

The long-term goal is to extend this self-sovereign approach, which does not depend on any single operator, from home IoT to data sharing in industry and mobility.

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Future directions and example topics

The next step is to bring the IoTxWeb3 framework closer to real services. Students' thesis topics are usually chosen from within these directions, through discussion.

• Making privacy-preserving access control with zero-knowledge proofs faster and practical
• Authentication and search infrastructures for devices and users based on self-sovereign identity (SSI)
• Designing and field-testing data sharing models for specific domains such as healthcare and mobility
• Automating device lifecycle management — updates, permissions, decommissioning — with smart contracts
• Data distribution architectures that combine edge processing with blockchains