# Leveraging Blockchain Technology for Secure 5G Offloading Processes +
## 5 Conclusions  
This research work introduces a secure mechanism for 5G offloading processes, leveraging Blockchain technology and SSI authentication systems to address their critical security and privacy challenges. The proposed solution enhances the resource-sharing processes in offloading by introducing a Blockchain-based marketplace and decentralized identity-based user authentication mechanism, resulting in improved security, flexibility, and user control. On the one hand, utilizing a permissioned Blockchain (Hyperledger Fabric) as the backbone of the marketplace allows for secure, transparent, and efficient resource allocation among operators. The marketplace automates the matchmaking process between primary and secondary operators, optimizing service delivery and enhancing operational flexibility and scalability in offloading environments. On the other hand, the integration of SSI ensures decentralized, trustworthy, and privacy-preserving authentication during the offloading process. SSI eliminates the need to exchange user credentials between operators, reducing the risk of unauthorized access and data breaches. The ACA-Py's ability to abstract the logic of SSI methods through its REST API has proven to be highly effective in this context. Furthermore, the modular design of the ACA-Py by minimizing the code deployed in the final user equipment suggests that it could be deployed on a wide range of IoT devices. Both technologies performance has been evaluated with adequate results in terms of additional service cut-off time. On the one hand, much of the additional complexity happens prior to the offloading process itself, so offloading processes management should start earlier than with current implementations to cover an additional required time of around 2 s. On the other hand, the cut-off time increases in around 0.5 s, which makes the solution more suitable for 5G applications where real time is not demanded. In the case of future work, the performance analysis should be extended for a higher number of existing operators and services in order to better analyze the scalability of the system. Different block sizes and consensus protocols should be evaluated in Fabric, as well as the possibility of considering the horizontal scalability of Fabric nodes in terms of computing, storing, and validation for highly demanding scenarios. Regarding SSI,different DIDs and ligther SSI agent solutions could be evaluated as well as analyze the possibility of optimizing the signatures validation processes (i.e., using a cache). Moreover, although payment mechanisms were left open, future implementations could further utilize Blockchain also for secure and automated financial transactions. Additionally, Blockchain could also be taken into account for secure, transparent, and trustworthy service feedback for improved operator selection. Finally, the proposed solution should be integrated into currently existing 5G equipment for better interoperability and performance analysis. The proposed architecture is compatible with offloading processes for both 5G and non-5G networks, making it a versatile solution in heterogeneous network environments. The approach is well-suited for evolving any kind of 5G applications, showcasing the potential for integration into future 6G networks and beyond. Conceptualization, C.R. ; methodology, C.R. ; software, S.d.D. and B.U. ; validation, C.R., S.d.D. and B.U. ; formal analysis, C.R., S.d.D. and B.U. ; investigation, C.R., S.d.D. and B.U. ; resources, C.R., S.d.D. and B.U. ; data curation, C.R., S.d.D. and B.U. ; writing--original draft preparation, C.R., S.d.D. and B.U. ; writing--review and editing, C.R., S.d.D. and B.U. ; visualization, C.R. ; supervision, C.R. ; project administration, C.R., S.d.D. and B.U. ; funding acquisition, C.R., S.d.D. and B.U. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript. This research was funded by he European Commission, Horizon Europe NANCY project, grant number 101096456. No new data were created or analyzed in this study.