Identity Management and Device Registration in Distributed IoT Systems

Abstract

The proliferation of Internet of Things (IoT) devices has created unprece dented challenges in securing distributed networks. As the foundation of IoT security, robust identity management and device registration mechanisms are essential for estab lishing trust before any data exchange occurs. This chapter explores the theoretical frameworks, architectural models, and practical implementations of identity lifecycle man agement in distributed IoT environments. We propose a comprehensive methodology that integrates zero-touch provisioning with blockchain-based identity verification to ensure se cure, scalable, and automated device onboarding. Through extensive simulation of 5,000 heterogeneous IoT devices, we evaluate the performance of our proposed architecture across multiple geographic regions. The results demonstrate that our approach achieves a 97.78% successful registration rate while maintaining an average provisioning latency of 352.56 milliseconds, proving its viability for large-scale enterprise deployments. The chapter concludes with a discussion on the trade-offs between security, performance, and scalability in modern authentication protocols.