SDN and blockchain integration: Overview of the current state and prospects for ensuring network security
Oleksandr Pidpalyi, Олександр Іванович Романов · Information Technology and Computer Engineering · 2025
Abstract. The study was devoted to a comprehensive analysis of the integration potential of software-defined networking and blockchain technologies for ensuring network security in the context of the evolution of cyber threats. The research methodology was based on a systematic approach using 46 scientific sources published during 2020-2024, and included a critical analysis of architectural solutions, comparison of technological characteristics, and assessment of integration capabilities. The results of the study revealed the unique potential of synergy between software-defined networking and blockchain, which provides an increase in cybersecurity through decentralisation of management, cryptographic protection and immutability of network transactions. It was established that the integration of technologies allows implementing fundamentally new security mechanisms, in particular, automation of security policies through smart contracts, dynamic access control based on blockchain, and increasing the resiliency of information systems. Key architectural solutions that provide multi-level network infrastructure protection were identified: decentralised storage of security policies, secure event log management, and automation of routing through smart contracts. The effectiveness of implementing the Zero Trust concept using blockchain technologies was proved, which creates a fundamentally new approach to the cybersecurity of corporate networks. Architectural solutions demonstrated high efficiency in protecting network infrastructure, especially in IoT environments, telecommunications, and corporate networks. The scientific originality of the study consisted in the substantiation of the conceptual model of software- defined networking and blockchain integration, which significantly exceeds the capabilities of conventional approaches to network security. The results of the study and the formulated recommendations for the deployment of integrative technological solutions within critical information infrastructures can be effectively applied to the design of secure network architectures. They also establish a theoretical basis for subsequent applied research in the domains of cybersecurity and network engineering