Data Trust Change Tracking and Notification System

The rapid growth and advancement of digital information exchange in this Internet age have transformed data into the new-age currency of the economy, with companies and organizations clamouring for access to this precious resource. This surge in data acquisition and control has brought to the forefront the critical issue of TRUST in data handling and dissemination. Data governance's lack of transparency and accountability has eroded user confidence, leading to data privacy and misuse concerns. To address these challenges, this thesis explores the concept of a federated data trust repository, which aims to provide a transparent, collaborative, and trustworthy framework for data sharing. Drawing on trust, governance, and accountability principles, the federated data trust model allows data producers to retain ownership and control over their data while enabling secure sharing with trusted entities (i.e., members of the data trust). It begins by examining the current data-sharing landscape and identifying the drawbacks of centralized and distributed architectures in ensuring transparency, provenance and auditability. It then articulates the research goals of establishing a data trust framework to restore trust between users and owners. The proposed federated data trust architecture encompasses data management, security, governance, and audit principles, focusing on enabling effective data sharing while maintaining control and accountability. The critical components of this architecture are data governance mechanisms, audit and provenance tracking capabilities leveraging blockchain technology, a change tracking and notification system, and a proxy interface for secure resource access. The architecture is designed to be flexible, adaptable to different use cases, and scalable to accommodate diverse data requirements. Benefits of the federated data trust model include enhanced data privacy, increased data quality, greater flexibility, better governance, cost savings and increased innovation. In conclusion, the federated data trust model offers a promising solution to address the trust deficit in data sharing, promoting transparency, collaboration, and accountability in this digital economy. By fostering trust between the producers and consumers, the federated data trust framework paves the way for a healthier and more sustainable future for data-driven services and innovations for the greater good.

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Science (M.Sc.)

Level thesis:degree_level

Masters

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Computer Science

Grantor

University of Saskatchewan

Year dc:date.issued

2024

Author dc:creator

• Tharmarajah, Sambavan

Advisors dc:contributor.advisor

• Deters, Ralph
• Vassileva, Julita

Committee member dc:contributor.committeemember

• Zhang, Chris

• Data Trust, Notification System, Blockchain

Language dc:language.iso

en

Handle dc:identifier.uri

https://hdl.handle.net/10388/15591

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:harvest.usask.ca:10388/15591