Towards Byzantine Fault-resistance in Workflows: Challenges and Directions

Authors

  • Sofia Vaz Instituto de Telecomunicações, Universidade de Aveiro, 3810-164 Aveiro, Portugal, Departamento de Eletrónica, Telecomunicações e Informática, Universidade de Aveiro, 3810-164 Aveiro, Portugal https://orcid.org/0009-0000-2976-3608
  • Vitor A. Cunha Instituto de Telecomunicações, Universidade de Aveiro, 3810-164 Aveiro, Portugal, Departamento de Eletrónica, Telecomunicações e Informática, Universidade de Aveiro, 3810-164 Aveiro, Portugal https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4566-0198
  • Rui L. Aguiar Instituto de Telecomunicações, Universidade de Aveiro, 3810-164 Aveiro, Portugal, Departamento de Eletrónica, Telecomunicações e Informática, Universidade de Aveiro, 3810-164 Aveiro, Portugal

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.13052/jmm1550-4646.2214

Keywords:

Byzantine Fault Tolerance, Distributed Workflows

Abstract

As distributed workflows increase in complexity, they become more vulnerable to Byzantine faults, wherein components may demonstrate adversarial behavior. Addressing such faults is critical for ensuring system reliability, especially in fields such as MLOps, Blockchain, and quantum computing. Byzantine Fault Tolerance (BFT) encompasses concepts wherein systems can continue to operate correctly in the presence of faulty nodes. This paper explores core concepts in Byzantine fault-tolerant systems and discusses their relevance to modern distributed environments, such as serverless approaches applied to scientific workloads, IoT, and APIs that may power 6G and the compute continuum. Several defensive strategies and aggregation techniques are analyzed to underscore their role in alleviating the impact of Byzantine faults. Ultimately, this study highlights the continued significance of Byzantine fault tolerance in safeguarding distributed systems’ resilience, security, and functionality for a new era facing increasing threats.

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Author Biographies

Sofia Vaz, Instituto de Telecomunicações, Universidade de Aveiro, 3810-164 Aveiro, Portugal, Departamento de Eletrónica, Telecomunicações e Informática, Universidade de Aveiro, 3810-164 Aveiro, Portugal

Sofia Vaz gained her B.Sc. in computer engineering in 2021 and her M.Sc. in cybersecurity in 2024 from the University of Aveiro. She is currently a Ph.D. student in a joint program with the Universities of Aveiro, Porto, and Minho. Additionally, she is a research fellow for EXIGENCE, with her research interests centered on security-based observation in distributed systems.

Vitor A. Cunha, Instituto de Telecomunicações, Universidade de Aveiro, 3810-164 Aveiro, Portugal, Departamento de Eletrónica, Telecomunicações e Informática, Universidade de Aveiro, 3810-164 Aveiro, Portugal

Vítor A. Cunha (Ph.D.’2022) is an Assistant Professor at the Univ. of Aveiro and a researcher at Instituto de Telecomunicações. He is currently working on sustainable networks and dynamic security mechanisms for softwarized and virtualized networks. Interests include network security, SDN, NFV, and the computing continuum.

Rui L. Aguiar, Instituto de Telecomunicações, Universidade de Aveiro, 3810-164 Aveiro, Portugal, Departamento de Eletrónica, Telecomunicações e Informática, Universidade de Aveiro, 3810-164 Aveiro, Portugal

Rui L. Aguiar received his degree in telecommunication engineering in 1990 and his Ph.D. degree in electrical engineering in 2001 from the University of Aveiro. He is currently a full professor at the University of Aveiro, responsible for the networking area, and has been previously an adjunct professor at the INI, Carnegie Mellon University. He was a visiting research scholar at Universidade Federal de Uberlândia Brazil and served as advisor to the portuguese governement on 5G policies. He is coordinating a research line nationwide in Instituto de Telecomunicações, on the area of networks and services. Over six years, he led the Technological Platform on Connected Communities, a regional cross-disciplinary industry-oriented activity on smart environments. His current research interests are centred on the implementation of advanced wireless networks and systems, with special emphasis on 5G networks and the Future Internet.

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Published

2026-03-26

How to Cite

Vaz, S. ., Cunha, V. A. ., & Aguiar, R. L. . (2026). Towards Byzantine Fault-resistance in Workflows: Challenges and Directions. Journal of Mobile Multimedia, 22(01), 97–120. https://doi.org/10.13052/jmm1550-4646.2214

Issue

2026: Vol 22 Iss 1

Section

SW2025: Wireless Technology Towards Livelihood

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