Blockchain-Enabled Cybersecurity Frameworks for Intelligent Transportation System

Abstract

The rapid evolution of Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) has significantly enhanced road safety, traffic efficiency, autonomous mobility, and connected vehicular communication through the integration of Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence, edge computing, and Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) technologies. Despite these advancements, the increasing dependence on interconnected digital infrastructures has exposed ITS to sophisticated cyber threats, including data manipulation, identity spoofing, distributed denial-of-service attacks, ransomware, and unauthorized access. Conventional centralized cybersecurity mechanisms often struggle to provide adequate trust, transparency, scalability, and resilience within highly dynamic transportation environments. Blockchain technology offers a decentralized and tamper-resistant paradigm capable of establishing trusted communication, secure data sharing, distributed authentication, and immutable transaction recording among heterogeneous transportation entities. This paper presents a comprehensive blockchain-enabled cybersecurity framework designed for intelligent transportation systems, integrating distributed ledger technology with smart contracts, edge intelligence, cryptographic identity management, and secure consensus mechanisms. The proposed framework enhances confidentiality, integrity, availability, accountability, and traceability while reducing single points of failure and improving trust among participating entities. Furthermore, the study examines existing research trends, identifies critical research gaps, and discusses future directions for secure, scalable, and intelligent transportation ecosystems capable of supporting next-generation autonomous mobility and smart city infrastructures.