Privacy-First Crowdsourcing: Blockchain and Local Differential Privacy in Crowdsourced Drone Services

We introduce a privacy-preserving framework for integrating consumer-grade drones into bushfire management. This system creates a marketplace where bushfire management authorities obtain essential data from drone operators. Key features include local differential privacy to protect data providers and a blockchain-based solution ensuring fair data exchanges and accountability. The framework is validated through a proof-of-concept implementation, demonstrating its scalability and potential for various large-scale data collection scenarios. This approach addresses privacy concerns and compliance with regulations like Australia's Privacy Act 1988, offering a practical solution for enhancing bushfire detection and management through crowdsourced drone services.
Comment: 3 pages, 2 figures, accepted and to be published in the proceedings of IEEE International Conference on Web Services (ICWS 2024)