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Blockchain-Based Secure Firmware Update Mechanisms for IoT Devices- A Comprehensive Review
Kamran Mustafa , Muzaffar Ali Khan , Muhammad Hamza Farooq and Ashir Kamal
Abstract:
The rapid increase in Internet of Things (IoT) devices, expected to reach 29 billion by 2030, has brought firmware security into the spotlight. The traditional mechanisms for updating devices rely on central entities, which are prone to single points of failure, integrity violations, and scalability constraints. Blockchain technology ensures decentralized mechanisms for protected records, crypto graphic defense and clear auditability. This paper performs a systematic review of 36 peer-reviewed studies published between 2017 and 2025 that address blockchain-based secure firmware update mech anisms for IoT devices. Proposed architectures, agreed protocols, security attributes and performance indicators were analyzed and classified by blockchain platforms such as Ethereum, Hyperledger Fabric and IOTA storage approaches like IPFS and distributed systems authentication techniques, including PUF-based and smart contract-based methods and deployment scenarios represented by LoRaWAN, UAV-assisted and industrial IoT. The review demonstrates high levels of decentralized verification, an immutable audit trail and automation through smart contracts. However, there are still critical issues that remain unresolved, including the inability of solutions currently available to scale to 100,000 devices and more, a power overhead of 8-15 percent caused by blockchain activity, lack of cross platform interoperability, and insufficient analysis of the security vulnerabilities of smart-contracts. Future studies ought to anticipate Layer-2 scaling approaches, energy-efficient cryptography primi tives, standardization, and hybrid architecture designs so that the practice of using blockchain-based f irmware security in heterogeneous IoT settings can be realized in practice.
Keywords:
Blockchain, Internet of Things (IoT), Firmware Updates, Security, Decentralization, Scalability, Consensus Mechanisms
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