XMPP architecture and security challenges in an IoT ecosystem

The elusive quest for technological advancements with the aim to make human life easier has led to the development of the Internet of Things (IoT). IoT technology holds the potential to revolutionise our daily life, but not before overcoming barriers of security and data protection. IoTs’ steered a new era of free information that transformed life in ways that one could not imagine a decade ago. Hence, humans have started considering IoTs as a pervasive technology. This digital transformation does not stop here as the new wave of IoT is not about people, rather it is about intelligent connected devices. This proliferation of devices has also brought serious security issues not only to its users but the society as a whole. Application layer protocols form an integral component of IoT technology stack, and XMPP is one of such protocol that is efficient and reliable that allows real-time instant messaging mechanism in an IoT ecosystem. Though the XMPP specification possesses various security features, some vulnerabilities also exist that can be leveraged by the attacking entity to compromise an IoT network. This paper will present XMPP architecture along with various security challenges that exist in the protocol. The paper has also simulated a Denial of Service (DoS) attack on the XMPP server rendering its services unresponsive to its legitimate clients

Estudo de segurança nos principais protocolos da Internet das Coisas

Monografia (graduação)—Universidade de Brasília, Instituto de Ciências Exatas, Departamento de Ciência da Computação, 2016.A partir de uma observação introdutória das questões atuais de segurança e privacidade na Internet das Coisas (IdC), os principais protocolos que compõem este paradigma são estudados, tendo-se em vista seus mecanismos de segurança e vulnerabilidades. O estudo traz, portanto, uma revisão de tais protocolos, propiciando uma análise do estado atual da segurança dos mesmos, que é, ao final, resumido em tabelas explicativas. Espera-se futuramente que o estudo siga atualizado com novos relatos de vulnerabilidades e com mais protocolos que possuam relevância, de modo a mantê-lo como referência por indivíduos envolvidos com o desenvolvimento da IdC.From an introductory observation of the central security and privacy issues in the Internet of Things, the main protocols in this paradigm are studied, taking in consideration their security mechanisms and vulnerabilities. The study continues with a revision of such protocols, providing a brief analysis of each protocol’s state in terms of security and, at the end, a summary of what was presented in explanatory tables. In the future, the study shall be updated with new reported vulnerabilities and other protocols that might acquire relevance in the IoT scenario, in such a way that the produced material remains updated as a reference for those involved with IoT