These come hand in hand with unprecedented levels of complexity in copyrighting and mon- etizing creations. In general, this protects the copyrights under the existing framework, which are cen- tralized, expensive, and beyond the reach of any independent creator. This paper presents an innovative blockchain-based framework for image copyrighting and social crypto monetization by using blockchain technologies such as Ethereum smart contracts and the InterPlanetary File System (IPFS). The proposed framework enables creators to publish digital images, calculate cryptographic proofs of image ownership with the SHA-256 hashing algorithm, store images in IPFS, and record metadata into the blockchain with unchanged timestamps. In addition, the platform supports “Like to Earn”, where public engagement for viewing is translated directly into rewarding creators with cryptocurrencies via smart contracts. The proposed framework adopts Web3 technologies to enable secure signing of all transactions with fraud prevention using the Elliptic Curve Digital Signature Algorithm (ECDSA) technique through MetaMask wallet authentication. Experimental evaluation of the proposed framework confirms that it can remove duplicate uploads, promptly verify image ownership, and enable social monetization of cryptocurrencies in a secured way.
Sai et al. (2026) studied this question.