Abstract

The attempt to enroll citizens under the umbrella of effective governance is being accomplished by bringing digitization to the pedestal of identity. The paper unfolds the story of India’s biometric based digital identity programme, Aadhaar, in fulfilling its goals of facilitating national security, financial inclusion and entitlement delivery. Using the socio-technical framework of ‘Good ID’, a user-centric approach to digital identity, we critique the intricacies of the design of Aadhaar as a bridge between citizen beneficiaries and the government and propose suggestions to forward the case of Aadhaar as ‘good’ digital ID.

Abstract

In this installment of our continuing series of of conversations with authors of new books on cities and urban culture, film scholar Sushmita Banerji interviews Priya Jaikumar on her most recent book Where Histories Reside: India as Filmed Space (Duke University Press, 2019). Dr. Jaikumar is a Professor of Cinema and Media Studies at the University of Southern California and the author of Cinema at the End of Empire: A Politics of Transition in Britain and India (Duke University Press, 2006).

Abstract

Liquefaction of soils during an earthquake motion results in complete loss of shear strength and stiffness leading to huge lateral ground movements and further failure of structures. Therefore, it is recommended to include liquefaction hazard assessment of soils in design procedure to avoid future damage of structures. There exists some concurrence between liquefaction assessment of free field sites and liquefaction of soils beneath foundations which is still a controversial issue. In the present study, a pile supported wharf has been considered from Vishakhapatnam port (Andhra Pradesh). Liquefaction hazard assessment has been carried out, and depending upon the factor of safety against liquefaction; the pile foundation system has been redesigned against liquefaction. The results from the present study indicate an optimized pile configuration compared to conventional design procedure. Factor of safeties achieved are high enough to avoid liquefaction-induced failures.

Abstract

resent Address Federal University of Piauí (UFPI)Campus Petrônio Portela - Bloco 8 Centro de Tecnologia, Ininga 64049-550 Teresina - PI, Brazil. Funding information: Companhia Energética de Minas Gerais, Grant/Award Number: Project No D0640; Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico, Grant/Award Numbers: Grant N. 309335/2017-5, Grant No. 431726/2018-3; FCT/MCTES, Grant/Award Number: Project UIDB/EEA/50008/2020; Brazilian National Council for Scientific and Technological Development, Grant/Award Numbers: 309335/2017-5, 431726/2018-3; FAPEMIG/CEMIG, Grant/Award Number: D0640; TSDA Comunicações Company

Abstract

In recent years, security and data privacy in Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) have gained great thrust. Several anonymity-preserving user authentication and key establishment mechanisms for WSNs with single base station have been suggested in the literature. However, sometimes a single base station may be insufficient to maintain the proper quality of services or it may be a single point of failure in WSNs. Very recently Amin et al. suggested a multiple base stations based anonymous user authentication and key establishment approach for WSNs to address the aforementioned problem. In this paper, we first demonstrate that Amin et al.’s scheme has several security pitfalls. To address the security issues in Amin et al.’s scheme, we design a more secure and anonymous user authentication and key establishment mechanism for WSNs that is also based on multiple base stations concept. An exhaustive comparative study demonstrates that the proposed mechanism gives significantly better security and more functionality attributes with comparable commutation as well as computation overheads while those are compared with Amin et al’s. approach.

Abstract

With the rapid growth of wireless technology, Internet of Things (IoT) became very popular in both industrial as well as consumer product domains. While there is a lot of available platforms and technologies for IoT, the access control issue is often overlooked in the IoT security research. An effective access control depends on the proper user authentication mechanism. Thus, access control in this scenario is an emerging and challenging problem in the IoT environment. In this paper, we design an anonymous fine-grained user access control mechanism for IoT architecture. In the proposed scheme, the user authentication is performed by the smart device node based on the user attributes, which enables fine-grained access control over the authorized data. We utilize the widely accepted formal verification tool, called the Automated Validation of Internet Security Protocols and Applications (AVISPA), to formally prove the security of the proposed scheme. Additionally, we also provide a detailed informal security analysis of the scheme. Finally, we perform a simulation study using the broadly used NS3 network simulator to show the practical impact on the proposed scheme on various network parameters.

Abstract

‘Corruption’ can be defined as the exploitation of delegated authority for illegitimate profits. We consider the kind of corruption happening on several levels in the country in regards to infrastructure and public works. Corruption can be identified by studying the issue from both sides—the government and the public. We look at how ICT, with the help of citizens, can help in identifying misuse and corruption. Corruption is a big menace in India. Transparency and accountability are generally improved when we enable support and citizen involvement in addition to closer collaboration between government and citizens. We dont claim that our model is not as such a complete remedy to fight corruption, and it can also be misused by fraudulent officials. Practically, impact depends on the aptness of ICT for local circumstances and requirements and in utilising technology. There are several corruption-prone public services and citizens can be for effectively monitoring and mitigating corruption as citizens would generally like to participate in activities that would help in mitigating corruption at their provincial level.

Abstract

Let $overline{p}(n)$ denote the number of overpartions of $n$, and $c_{r}(n)$ be the number of representations of $n$ as a sum of $r$ squares where representations with different orders and different signs are counted as distinct. Then we prove that$$overline{p}(n)=sum_{r=0}^{n}(-1)^{n+r}, binom{n+1}{r+1}, c_{r}(n).

Abstract

We establish a convex resource theory of non-Markovianity inducing information backflow under the constraint of small time intervals within the temporal evolution. We identify the free operations and a generalized bona-fide measure of non-Markovian information backflow. The framework satisfies the basic properties of a consistent resource theory. The proposed resource quantifier is lower bounded by the optimization free Rivas–Huelga–Plenio (RHP) measure of non-Markovianity. We next define the robustness of non-Markovianity and show that it can directly linked with the RHP measure of non-Markovianity through a lower bound. This enables a physical interpretation of the RHP measure. We further relate robustness of non-Markovianity with the quantum capacity of dephasing channels.

Abstract

Software-defined networking (SDN) is an agile, modern networking approach that facilitates innovations in the networking paradigm. The abstracted and centralized network operating system facilitates the network management and reduces operational expenditure (OPEX). The open nature and simplicity of the data-forwarding plane dramatically reduces capital expenditure (CAPEX) by leveraging commodity servers and switches. SDN also lends itself very well to address major cloud computing issues and complement cloud services, especially in terms of network virtualization and networking as a service (NaaS). As a new technology, SDN does involve certain security challenges, which include distributed denial of service (DDoS) threats, build and run time injected malware, insider (tenant) attacks, and security holes resulting from controller misconfigurations. These are severe threats that can cripple an entire network. It is crucial to address the SDN vulnerabilities to ensure its successful deployment in private data center networks, on cloud platforms and beyond. Some security solutions leverage the built-in features of SDN, such as its controller software component, while other solutions provide external SDN applications running above the controller. This study reviews the security solutions for the vulnerabilities of state-of-the-art SDN controllers and the available countermeasures. Furthermore, an in-depth analysis of the SDN features that support security is presented, and some unresolved research issues on SDN controllers are identified.