Hierarchical Clustering via Single and Complete Linkage Using Fully Homomorphic Encryption

Hierarchical Clustering via Single and Complete Linkage Using Fully Homomorphic Encryption

Hierarchical clustering is a widely used data analysis technique. Typically, tools for this method operate on data in its original, readable form, raising privacy concerns when a clustering task involving sensitive data that must remain confidential is outsourced to an external server. To address th...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) Vol. 24; no. 15; p. 4826
Main Authors: Sokhonn, Lynin, Park, Yun-Soo, Lee, Mun-Kyu
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 25-07-2024
Subjects:
Algorithms
Analysis
CKKS scheme
Cluster analysis
Clustering
complete linkage
Confidentiality
Data analysis
hierarchical clustering
homomorphic encryption
Information management
Machine learning
Privacy
Privacy, Right of
single linkage
CKKS scheme
hierarchical clustering
complete linkage
single linkage
homomorphic encryption
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:Hierarchical clustering is a widely used data analysis technique. Typically, tools for this method operate on data in its original, readable form, raising privacy concerns when a clustering task involving sensitive data that must remain confidential is outsourced to an external server. To address this issue, we developed a method that integrates Cheon-Kim-Kim-Song homomorphic encryption (HE), allowing the clustering process to be performed without revealing the raw data. In hierarchical clustering, the two nearest clusters are repeatedly merged until the desired number of clusters is reached. The proximity of clusters is evaluated using various metrics. In this study, we considered two well-known metrics: single linkage and complete linkage. Applying HE to these methods involves sorting encrypted distances, which is a resource-intensive operation. Therefore, we propose a cooperative approach in which the data owner aids the sorting process and shares a list of data positions with a computation server. Using this list, the server can determine the clustering of the data points. The proposed approach ensures secure hierarchical clustering using single and complete linkage methods without exposing the original data.
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ISSN:1424-8220
1424-8220
DOI:10.3390/s24154826