A Multilevel Digital Watermarking Protocol for Vector Geographic Data Based on Blockchain

A digital watermarking protocol is a kind of electronic transaction protocol that addresses the challenges of protecting copyright and ensuring trust in the transaction of vector geographic data. Existing digital watermarking protocols suffer from issues such as reliance on trusted third-party institutions and lack of consideration for multilevel transactions. Consequently, it becomes difficult to maintain full traceability of data after multiple transactions. To overcome these limitations, this paper proposes the utilization of blockchain technology as a replacement for third-party institutions. A traceable transaction record framework is introduced, leveraging smart contracts to provide transaction authentication services. Furthermore, a digital watermarking protocol based on blockchain authentication is developed to meet the requirements of trusted transactions and traceability in multilevel transaction network scenarios involving vector geographic data. Additionally, a robust digital watermarking algorithm is proposed, employing QR codes and relative coordinates to embed blockchain transaction authentication information into carrier data. This algorithm effectively safeguards the copyright protection of vector geographic data. Experimental results demonstrate the algorithm’s robustness, as it successfully withstands common attacks. The designed digital watermarking protocol ensures trusted transactions and traceability of vector geographic data within multilevel transaction network scenarios.