Group-Based Key Management Protocol for Energy Efficiency in Long-Lived and Large-Scale Distributed Sensor Networks

As wireless sensor networks grow, so does the need for effective security mechanisms. We propose a cryptographic key-management protocol, called energy-efficient key-management (EEKM) protocol. Using a location-based group key scheme, the protocol supports the revocation of compromised nodes and energy-efficient rekeying. The design is motivated by the observation that unicast-based rekeying does not meet the security requirements of periodic rekeying in long-lived wireless sensor networks. EEKM supports broadcast-based rekeying for low-energy key management and high resilience. In addition, to match the increasing complexity of encryption keys, the protocol uses a dynamic composition key scheme. EEKM also provides group-management protocols for secure group communication. We analyzed the energy efficiency and security of EEKM and compared it to other key-management protocols using a network simulator

Efficient key management in wireless sensor network security

Wireless sensor network is a multi-hop ad hoc network formed by a large number of low-cost micro-sensor nodes which communicate through radio channels. It is widely used in many areas in modern society and attracts a lot of attention from researchers. This research is on wireless sensor network security and it focuses on key management in hierarchical wireless sensor networks. Through literature review, the drawback and weakness of existing key management schemes are analyzed from various aspects including key establishment, key distribution, key update, authentication and node operation mechanism. Assessment criteria for key management scheme are proposed under different requirements and constraints of wireless sensor networks. The security criteria cover keying model, key distribution, key update, node operation and resilience. For cluster based hierarchical wireless sensor networks, an assistant node is introduced in a cluster to deal with the situation of cluster head compromise and to keep the member nodes securely staying in the network. With introduction of assistant nodes, a complete secure efficient hierarchical key management scheme (SEHKM) for wireless sensor network is proposed. The scheme supports three types of keys and the big improvement over existing key management schemes is on group key update, which is based on pseudo-random numbers and group Diffie-Hellman. The analysis and evaluation have shown that that SEHKM offers strong security with efficient operation from energy consumption point of view

Enhanced group-based wireless ad-hoc sensor network protocol

[EN] Communication is the major energy consumption source in wireless ad-hoc sensor networks. Thus, an efficient tradeoff between the energy cost of the communication and network's performance is a key challenge in conceiving a wireless ad-hoc sensor network. In this article, we propose an improved group-based architecture for wireless ad-hoc sensor networks. An optimized group forming procedure and an efficient communication operation are introduced. In order to validate the proposed approach, we suggest a group-based strategy to monitor pharmaceutical drugs during transportation. Real measurements of temperature and vibration were performed to validate the effectiveness of our approach.Khedher, M.; Lloret, J.; Douik, A. (2016). Enhanced group-based wireless ad-hoc sensor network protocol. International Journal of Distributed Sensor Networks. 12(7):1-18. https://doi.org/10.1177/1550147716659427S118127Dargie, W., & Poellabauer, C. (2010). Fundamentals of Wireless Sensor Networks. doi:10.1002/9780470666388Singh, S. P., & Sharma, S. C. (2015). A Survey on Cluster Based Routing Protocols in Wireless Sensor Networks. Procedia Computer Science, 45, 687-695. doi:10.1016/j.procs.2015.03.133Liao, Y., Qi, H., & Li, W. (2013). Load-Balanced Clustering Algorithm With Distributed Self-Organization for Wireless Sensor Networks. IEEE Sensors Journal, 13(5), 1498-1506. doi:10.1109/jsen.2012.2227704Peng, I.-H., & Chen, Y.-W. (2013). Energy consumption bounds analysis and its applications for grid based wireless sensor networks. Journal of Network and Computer Applications, 36(1), 444-451. doi:10.1016/j.jnca.2012.04.014Lloret, J., Garcia, M., Tomás, J., & Boronat, F. (2008). GBP-WAHSN: A Group-Based Protocol for Large Wireless Ad Hoc and Sensor Networks. Journal of Computer Science and Technology, 23(3), 461-480. doi:10.1007/s11390-008-9147-6Lloret, J., García, M., Boronat, F., & Tomás, J. (s. f.). MANET Protocols Performance in Group-based Networks. IFIP International Federation for Information Processing, 161-172. doi:10.1007/978-0-387-84839-6_13Lloret, J., Garcia, M., & Tomas, J. (s. f.). Improving Mobile and Ad-hoc Networks performance using Group-Based Topologies. Wireless Sensor and Actor Networks II, 209-220. doi:10.1007/978-0-387-09441-0_18Lloret, J., Palau, C., Boronat, F., & Tomas, J. (2008). Improving networks using group-based topologies. Computer Communications, 31(14), 3438-3450. doi:10.1016/j.comcom.2008.05.030Garcia, M., Sendra, S., Lloret, J., & Canovas, A. (2011). Saving energy and improving communications using cooperative group-based Wireless Sensor Networks. Telecommunication Systems, 52(4), 2489-2502. doi:10.1007/s11235-011-9568-3Garcia, M., & Lloret, J. (2009). A Cooperative Group-Based Sensor Network for Environmental Monitoring. Cooperative Design, Visualization, and Engineering, 276-279. doi:10.1007/978-3-642-04265-2_41Shaikh, R. A., Jameel, H., d’ Auriol, B. J., Heejo Lee, Sungyoung Lee, & Young-Jae Song. (2009). Group-Based Trust Management Scheme for Clustered Wireless Sensor Networks. IEEE Transactions on Parallel and Distributed Systems, 20(11), 1698-1712. doi:10.1109/tpds.2008.258Chen, Y.-S., Hsu, C.-S., & Lee, H.-K. (2014). An Enhanced Group Mobility Protocol for 6LoWPAN-Based Wireless Body Area Networks. IEEE Sensors Journal, 14(3), 797-807. doi:10.1109/jsen.2013.2287895Yao-Chung Chang, Zhi-Sheng Lin, & Jiann-Liang Chen. (2006). Cluster based self-organization management protocols for wireless sensor networks. IEEE Transactions on Consumer Electronics, 52(1), 75-80. doi:10.1109/tce.2006.1605028Fazio, P., De Rango, F., Sottile, C., & Santamaria, A. F. (2013). Routing Optimization in Vehicular Networks: A New Approach Based on Multiobjective Metrics and Minimum Spanning Tree. International Journal of Distributed Sensor Networks, 9(11), 598675. doi:10.1155/2013/598675Saravanan, M., & Madheswaran, M. (2014). A Hybrid Optimized Weighted Minimum Spanning Tree for the Shortest Intrapath Selection in Wireless Sensor Network. Mathematical Problems in Engineering, 2014, 1-8. doi:10.1155/2014/71342

A Survey on Wireless Sensor Network Security

Wireless sensor networks (WSNs) have recently attracted a lot of interest in the research community due their wide range of applications. Due to distributed nature of these networks and their deployment in remote areas, these networks are vulnerable to numerous security threats that can adversely affect their proper functioning. This problem is more critical if the network is deployed for some mission-critical applications such as in a tactical battlefield. Random failure of nodes is also very likely in real-life deployment scenarios. Due to resource constraints in the sensor nodes, traditional security mechanisms with large overhead of computation and communication are infeasible in WSNs. Security in sensor networks is, therefore, a particularly challenging task. This paper discusses the current state of the art in security mechanisms for WSNs. Various types of attacks are discussed and their countermeasures presented. A brief discussion on the future direction of research in WSN security is also included.Comment: 24 pages, 4 figures, 2 table

An Outline of Security in Wireless Sensor Networks: Threats, Countermeasures and Implementations

With the expansion of wireless sensor networks (WSNs), the need for securing the data flow through these networks is increasing. These sensor networks allow for easy-to-apply and flexible installations which have enabled them to be used for numerous applications. Due to these properties, they face distinct information security threats. Security of the data flowing through across networks provides the researchers with an interesting and intriguing potential for research. Design of these networks to ensure the protection of data faces the constraints of limited power and processing resources. We provide the basics of wireless sensor network security to help the researchers and engineers in better understanding of this applications field. In this chapter, we will provide the basics of information security with special emphasis on WSNs. The chapter will also give an overview of the information security requirements in these networks. Threats to the security of data in WSNs and some of their counter measures are also presented

Solutions and Tools for Secure Communication in Wireless Sensor Networks

Secure communication is considered a vital requirement in Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) applications. Such a requirement embraces different aspects, including confidentiality, integrity and authenticity of exchanged information, proper management of security material, and effective prevention and reaction against security threats and attacks. However, WSNs are mainly composed of resource-constrained devices. That is, network nodes feature reduced capabilities, especially in terms of memory storage, computing power, transmission rate, and energy availability. As a consequence, assuring secure communication in WSNs results to be more difficult than in other kinds of network. In fact, trading effectiveness of adopted solutions with their efficiency becomes far more important. In addition, specific device classes or technologies may require to design ad hoc security solutions. Also, it is necessary to efficiently manage security material, and dynamically cope with changes of security requirements. Finally, security threats and countermeasures have to be carefully considered since from the network design phase. This Ph.D. dissertion considers secure communication in WSNs, and provides the following contributions. First, we provide a performance evaluation of IEEE 802.15.4 security services. Then, we focus on the ZigBee technology and its security services, and propose possible solutions to some deficiencies and inefficiencies. Second, we present HISS, a highly scalable and efficient key management scheme, able to contrast collusion attacks while displaying a graceful degradation of performance. Third, we present STaR, a software component for WSNs that secures multiple traffic flows at the same time. It is transparent to the application, and provides runtime reconfigurability, thus coping with dynamic changes of security requirements. Finally, we describe ASF, our attack simulation framework for WSNs. Such a tool helps network designers to quantitatively evaluate effects of security attacks, produce an attack ranking based on their severity, and thus select the most appropriate countermeasures