Improving the Security of Containerized Workloads using Transparency and Traceability Services

• URL: http://arxiv.org/abs/2608.00660v1
• Date: Sat, 01 Aug 2026 13:25:44 GMT
• Title: Improving the Security of Containerized Workloads using Transparency and Traceability Services
• Abstract summary: Containerized workloads are commonly built via CI/CD pipelines, stored in registries, and executed across heterogeneous infrastructures.<n>A single compromised build step or credential can turn routine automation into large-scale distribution of malicious artifacts.<n>We present an architecture for verifiable container image distribution that addresses key-management challenges and enables policy-enforced admission-time verification.
• Score: 0.8873265946210989
• License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
• Abstract: Containerized workloads are commonly built via CI/CD pipelines, stored in registries, and executed across heterogeneous infrastructures, including cloud and edge environments. A single compromised build step or credential can turn routine automation into large-scale distribution of malicious artifacts, motivating integrity, transparency, and enforceable deployment-time checks. In this paper, we present an architecture for verifiable container image distribution that addresses key-management challenges and enables policy-enforced admission-time verification. A transparency service generates one-time signing keys bound to authenticated identities, records signing events in an append-only transparency registry, and returns cryptographically verifiable proofs of inclusion. These proofs and identity attributes are attached to image metadata and evaluated by policy-as-code at admission time, so only compliant artifacts are deployed. We implement a proof-of-concept integrated with GitHub Actions and GitLab Runners and evaluate how the resulting pipeline mitigates common supply-chain attacks under a realistic threat model.

Related papers

• Formal Verification of Agentic Systems over Operational Data [59.98246281888422]
  Agentic systems driven by large language models (LLMs) are increasingly deployed in real-world where they act on persistent operational data.<n>Existing approaches do not provide such system-level guarantees.<n>We study here the verification of agentic systems comprising a single LLM and a tool orchestration harness over relational operational data.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2026-08-04T13:01:30Z)
• Identity-Bound Academic Credentials on Blockchain: On-Chain Issuer Accreditation with ERC-3643 and OnchainID [39.146761527401424]
  We present the design of a registry for identity-bound academic credentials that composes OnchainID self-sovereign identities.<n>Each certificate is represented as a signed, updatable claim bound to a student's identity and verifiable by any third party without a wallet.<n>We make explicit the tension between a transferable-security-token-standard and non-transferable credentials, clarifying which of its guarantees carry over.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2026-07-17T17:18:34Z)
• InsureConnect: Blockchain and Digital Identity for the Property Insurance Market [3.3574440920213315]
  This paper presents InsureConnect, a blockchain-based system for improving transparency, authentication, and auditability in property-insurance after natural disasters.<n>The system combines Self-Sovereign Identity (SSI), Decentralized Identifiers (DIDs), Verifiable Credentials, satellite imagery, Hyperledger Fabric, and IPFS to register identities, insurance contracts, and damage claims.<n>The prototype was evaluated under concurrent request loads from 50 to 3000 requests, measuring latency, throughput, and dropped connections.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2026-05-04T17:01:16Z)
• Attesting LLM Pipelines: Enforcing Verifiable Training and Release Claims [2.0403981727850233]
  Modern Large Language Model (LLM) systems are assembled from third-party artifacts such as pre-trained weights, fine-tuning adapters, datasets, dependency packages, and container images.<n>This speed comes with supply-chain risks, including compromised dependencies, malicious hub artifacts, unsafe dedefaultization, forged provenance, and backdoored models.<n>We propose an attestation-aware promotion gate: before an artifact is admitted into trusted environments, the gate verifies claim evidence, enforces safe loading and static scanning policies, and applies secure-by-serial deployment constraints.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2026-03-30T20:37:48Z)
• EmbTracker: Traceable Black-box Watermarking for Federated Language Models [41.35196057964303]
  Federated Language Model (FedLM) allows a collaborative learning without sharing raw data, yet it introduces a critical vulnerability.<n>We propose EmbTracker, a server-side, traceable black-box watermarking framework specifically designed for FedLMs.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2026-03-12T15:57:32Z)
• Secure Tool Manifest and Digital Signing Solution for Verifiable MCP and LLM Pipelines [5.979408039210097]
  Large Language Models (LLMs) are increasingly adopted in sensitive domains such as healthcare and financial institutions' data analytics.<n>Existing control mechanisms, such as the Model Context Protocol (MCP), define compliance policies for tool invocation but lack verifiable enforcement and transparent validation of model actions.<n>We propose a novel Secure Tool Manifest and Digital Signing Framework, a structured and security-aware extension of Model Context Protocols.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2026-01-30T16:22:21Z)
• CaMeLs Can Use Computers Too: System-level Security for Computer Use Agents [60.98294016925157]
  AI agents are vulnerable to prompt injection attacks, where malicious content hijacks agent behavior to steal credentials or cause financial loss.<n>We introduce Single-Shot Planning for CUAs, where a trusted planner generates a complete execution graph with conditional branches before any observation of potentially malicious content.<n>Although this architectural isolation successfully prevents instruction injections, we show that additional measures are needed to prevent Branch Steering attacks.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2026-01-14T23:06:35Z)
• Document Data Matching for Blockchain-Supported Real Estate [2.9873162504735133]
  This work presents a system that integrates optical character recognition (OCR), natural language processing (NLP), and verifiable credentials (VCs) to automate document extraction, verification, and management.<n>The approach standardizes heterogeneous document formats into VCs and applies automated data matching to detect inconsistencies, while the blockchain provides a decentralized trust layer that reinforces transparency and integrity.<n>The proposed framework demonstrates the potential to streamline real estate transactions, strengthen stakeholder trust, and enable scalable, secure digital processes.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2025-12-30T20:30:48Z)
• Binding Agent ID: Unleashing the Power of AI Agents with accountability and credibility [46.323590135279126]
  BAID (Binding Agent ID) is a comprehensive identity infrastructure establishing verifiable user-code binding.<n>We implement and evaluate a complete prototype system, demonstrating the practical feasibility of blockchain-based identity management and zkVM-based authentication protocol.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2025-12-19T13:01:54Z)
• Why Software Signing (Still) Matters: Trust Boundaries in the Software Supply Chain [7.338679524518469]
  We argue that core guarantees of signing, provenance, integrity, and accountability are not automatically carried across different software distribution boundaries.<n>Treating signing as a baseline layer of defense strengthens supply chain assurance even when registries are secure.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2025-10-06T15:58:08Z)
• Balancing Confidentiality and Transparency for Blockchain-based Process-Aware Information Systems [43.253676241213626]
  We propose an architecture for blockchain-based PAISs to preserve confidentiality and transparency.<n>Smart contracts enact, enforce and store public interactions, while attribute-based encryption techniques are adopted to specify access grants to confidential information.<n>We assess the security of our solution through a systematic threat model analysis and evaluate its practical feasibility.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2024-12-07T20:18:36Z)

This list is automatically generated from the titles and abstracts of the papers in this site.

This site does not guarantee the quality of this site (including all information) and is not responsible for any consequences.