EBay Company Applies for Patent on System-Level Function-Based Access Control for Blockchain, Enhancing Smart Contract Security

EBay Company Applies for Patent on System-Level Function-Based Access Control for Blockchain, Enhancing Smart Contract SecurityOn March 26, 2025, the State Intellectual Property Office of China revealed that EBay Company (hereinafter referred to as "EBay") filed a patent application in June 2019 for "System-level function-based access control for blockchain," with publication number CN119670066A. This patented technology aims to enhance the security of blockchain smart contracts by implementing more granular access control through system-level control of function calls

EBay Company Applies for Patent on System-Level Function-Based Access Control for Blockchain, Enhancing Smart Contract Security

On March 26, 2025, the State Intellectual Property Office of China revealed that EBay Company (hereinafter referred to as "EBay") filed a patent application in June 2019 for "System-level function-based access control for blockchain," with publication number CN119670066A. This patented technology aims to enhance the security of blockchain smart contracts by implementing more granular access control through system-level control of function calls.

The patent abstract details the core mechanism of this technology: it provides a system-level, function-based access control method for the execution of smart contracts on a blockchain. The core of this method lies in utilizing a function boundary detection tool within the smart contract execution kernel to strictly control function calls at the system level. This function boundary detection tool is not a simple permission check; instead, it generates a "call stack." This call stack acts as a detailed execution log, recording the series of function calls made by the kernel to execute a smart contract. It clearly shows the call order of each function and the interdependencies between functions.

The key to this technology lies in applying access control rules to the generated call stack. By pre-setting access control rules, the system can precisely allow or prohibit specific function calls, or even control specific function call chains. This means developers can define complex access control strategies based on their needs. For example, allowing function A to call function B but prohibiting function C from calling B; or allowing function D to call function E, but only if function E's parameters meet specific conditions.

This call stack-based access control mechanism offers significant advantages. Traditional access control methods typically rely on simple permission settings, such as whether an account has read/write access to a contract. This approach is too coarse-grained to handle complex smart contract scenarios. EBay's patented technology provides a more granular control granularity, down to individual function calls and even function call parameters. This means developers can more effectively prevent malicious code intrusion and the exploitation of various potential security vulnerabilities.

For example, a smart contract might contain multiple functions, some handling sensitive data and others handling non-sensitive data. Using traditional access control methods, developers might only be able to set the entire contract's access permissions to read-only or writable, which fails to effectively protect sensitive data. This patented technology, however, can set stricter access control rules for functions handling sensitive data, such as only allowing specific accounts or specific transaction types to call these functions, thereby effectively protecting sensitive data from unauthorized access.

If a function call chain or parameter does not meet the requirements defined in the access control rules, the system will block or immediately terminate the function call execution. This ensures that only function calls that meet predefined conditions can be executed, effectively preventing unauthorized code execution and data tampering.

This function call chain-based access control allows developers to build more sophisticated access control strategies. No longer limited to simple permission allocation, developers can design complex, multi-layered access control strategies based on the smart contract's logic and security requirements, thus maximizing the security and reliability of smart contracts. Such complex access control strategies can effectively counter various potential attacks, such as reentrancy attacks and overflow attacks, significantly enhancing smart contract security.

The emergence of this patented technology undoubtedly holds significant importance for the blockchain security field. It provides developers with a new and more secure and reliable smart contract development model, and provides a solid security guarantee for the widespread application of blockchain technology. As blockchain technology continues to develop and become more prevalent, the demand for smart contract security is also increasing. EBay's patented technology will help drive blockchain technology towards a more secure and reliable future. In the future, we can expect this technology to be applied in more blockchain application scenarios, further enhancing blockchain security and user trust in blockchain technology. EBay's continuous innovation in blockchain security has brought new ideas and directions to the entire industry, worthy of industry attention and study. This will not only enhance the security of blockchain technology but also promote the healthy development of blockchain technology.

The core of this technology lies in its system-level and function-based nature, differentiating it from previous coarse-grained access control methods. It provides crucial technological support for building more secure and reliable blockchain applications and reflects EBay's technological strength and innovation in the blockchain security field. Through fine-grained control, it is possible to effectively reduce the risk of smart contract attacks, thereby improving the stability and security of the entire blockchain system. In the future, as this technology is further refined and applied, it is expected to bring even more significant improvements to blockchain security. This is of great significance for promoting the popularization and application of blockchain technology.