Recent advances of routing algorithms have greatly improved the reliability and efficiency of vehicular ad hoc networks (VANETs). But the constraints of network resources result in a trade-off between reliable data transmission and the performance of routing protocols. Rather than relaying data via intensive routing procedures, the distributed technology can spread data source over multiple cooperative components to facilitate the data access. Particularly, decentralized ledger technology (DLT), which is in essence a distributed technology, incorporates all the participants to maintain and synchronize the full copy of data. Coupled with the consensus mechanism, it guarantees the preservation of trustworthy data. These two key features of DLT contribute a more reliable data delivery. However, in VANETs, due to the locomotion of vehicles, the participants of DLT frequently adjust their physical connection, and thus interrupt their data transmission. In this paper, we propose a novel framework, where the VANET is built upon the virtualization of DLT (vDLT), to achieve seamless and reliable data transmission. In the proposed framework, components in VANETs are equipped to run vDLT nodes, which disseminate data in the virtualization layer; thus, the variation of physical layout is transparent to the data transmission via vDLT. Simulation results are presented to show the effectiveness of the proposed framework.
The benefits of blockchain technology are evident in the banking industry as the underlying technology for cryptocurrencies. Recently, research has been focused on novel, non-cryptocurrency uses of blockchain for other industries such as national defense. Application of these technologies in military use cases requires special consideration of the limitations inherent to tactical military operations, namely the network communication technologies. In this work we explore the performance of blockchain technologies on network environments representative of those available in Department of Defense (DoD) tactical operations. Our experimentation with the Ethereum blockchain on a mobile network emulation reveals a series of verbose blockchain network communication protocols as well as a heavy reliance on Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) for block transfer and synchronization that may limit the effectiveness of blockchain on current DoD mobile ad hoc networks.
Vehicular Ad Hoc Networks (VANETs) are a particular subclass of mobile ad hoc networks that raise a number of security challenges, notably from the way users authenticate the network. Authentication technologies based on existing security policies and access control rules in such networks assume full trust on Roadside Unit (RSU) and authentication servers. The disclosure of authentication parameters enables user's trace-ability over the network. VANETs' trusted entities (e.g. RSU) can utilize such information to track a user traveling behavior, violating user privacy and anonymity. In this paper, we proposed a novel, light-weight, Adaptive Group-based Zero Knowledge Proof-Authentication Protocol (AGZKP-AP) for VANETs. The proposed authentication protocol is capable of offering various levels of users' privacy settings based on the type of services available on such networks. Our scheme is based on the Zero-Knowledge-Proof (ZKP) crypto approach with the support of trade-off options. Users have the option to make critical decisions on the level of privacy and the amount of resources usage they prefer such as short system response time versus the number of private information disclosures. Furthermore, AGZKP-AP is incorporated with a distributed privilege control and revoking mechanism that render user's private information to law enforcement in case of a traffic violation.
Due to the mobility of nodes, lack of infrastructure and limited computing and storage resources in mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs), this scheme uses the self-certification public key, combined with the interactive zero-knowledge proof and KEA+ key exchange method in the GPS identity authentication protocol, uses four interactions to complete the two-way identity authentication and key exchange of both parties, and which security is analyzed subsequently. The scheme effectively reduces the leakage of the claimant's secret knowledge in the identity authentication process, and enhances the reliability of the identity authentication and key exchange process.
Delay tolerant network (DTN) is successfully proposed for setting up emergency post disaster communication networks when normal communication infrastructure is incapacitated. Performance of such networks get affected by selfish nodes that do not participate in message forwarding. Thus, nodes must receive satisfactory rewards for cooperation. The available incentive schemes either rely on central trusted authorities or do not use an explicit and secure digital currency. Blockchain, a decentralized digital ledger of immutable transactions, is an attractive approach for addressing the incentive challenges in peer-to-peer networks that lack central trusted authorities. Bitcoin, the Blockchain based cryptocurrency, make it possible to devise practical credit based incentive schemes for such networks. In this paper, we propose a Blockchain based incentive scheme for DTN based post disaster communication network that uses Bitcoin to incentivize nodes for cooperation. The scheme uses a novel reward strategy to bring rationality in the incentivizing process.
Sara Nadeem, Muhammad Rizwan, Fahad Ahmad, Jaweria Manzoor
Cognitive radio, ad hoc networks' applications are continuously increasing in wireless communication globally. In vehicles' environment, cognitive radio technology with mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs) enables vehicles to monitor the available channels and to effectively function in these frequencies through sharing ongoing information with drivers and different frameworks to enhance traffic safety on roads. To fulfill the computational storage resources’ limitations of a specific vehicle, Vehicular Cloud Computing (VCC) is used by merging VANET with cloud computing. Cloud computing requires high security and protection because authenticate users and attackers have the same rights in VCC. The security is enhanced in CRVANETs, but the distributed nature of cloud unlocks a door for dissimilar attacks, such as trust modal, data security, connection fault and query tracking attacks. This paper proposes an effective and secured blockchain scheme-based distributed cloud architecture in place of conventional cloud architecture to secure the drivers’ privacy with low cost and on-demand sensing procedure in CRVANETs ecosystem.
Summary Decentralization, in the form of mesh networking and blockchain, two promising technologies, is coming to the telecommunications industry. Mesh networking allows wider low‐cost Internet access with infrastructures built from routers contributed by diverse owners, whereas blockchain enables transparency and accountability for investments, revenue, or other forms of economic compensations from sharing of network traffic, content, and services. Crowdsourcing network coverage, combined with crowdfunding costs, can create economically sustainable yet decentralized Internet access. This means that every participant can invest in resources and pay or be paid for usage to recover the costs of network devices and maintenance. While mesh networks and mesh routing protocols enable self‐organized networks that expand organically, cryptocurrencies and smart contracts enable the economic coordination among network providers and consumers. We explore and evaluate two existing blockchain software stacks, Hyperledger Fabric (HLF) and Ethereum geth with Proof of Authority (PoA) intended as a local lightweight distributed ledger, deployed in a real city‐wide production mesh network and in laboratory network. We quantify the performance and bottlenecks and identify the current limitations and opportunities for improvement to serve locally the needs of wireless mesh networks, without the privacy and economic cost of relying on public blockchains.
One remarkable feature of vehicular ad hoc networks is characterized by an opportunistic communications by means of store-carry-forward message relaying which requires the cooperation of vehicles on the networks. However, we cannot be sure that all vehicles willingly contribute their computing resources to the networks for message forwarding with no rewards for their efforts in real-world scenarios. In addition, unfortunately, there may exist some selfish and greedy node which may not help others but tend to take their own gain. To cope with this challenge, incentive mechanisms are generally considered as the promising solution. In this paper, we design a Bitcoin-based secure and reliable incentive scheme for cooperative vehicular delay tolerant networking services. Bitcoin is the well-known worldwide cryptocurrency and digital payment system whose implementation relies on cryptographic techniques, which makes it possible to develop a practical credit-based incentive scheme on the vehicular networks at a low cost. We also implement Bitcoin transaction scripts to handle our proposed incentive scheme.
Ladan Rabieekenari, Kamran Sayrafian, John S. Baras
Public safety organizations increasingly rely on wireless technology for their mission critical communication during disaster response operations. In such situations, a communication network could face much higher traffic demands compared to its normal operation. Given the limited capacity of base stations in the network, such peak traffic scenarios could lead to high blocking probability or equivalently service interruptions during critical communications. At the same time, networking infrastructure can breakdown during a disaster. Proper deployment of mobile cells - Cells on Wheels - can help to enhance the network coverage or accommodate excess traffic in areas with high concentration of users. In addition, an intelligent relocation strategy can be used to efficiently adapt the cell locations to match variations in the spatial distribution of the traffic. In practical scenarios, these mobile base stations may not be able to relocate to all positions within the target field. Such prohibited areas introduce additional constraints on designing an intelligent relocation strategy. In this paper, we propose a decentralized relocation algorithm that enables mobile cells to adapt their positions in response to potentially changing traffic patterns in a field with prohibited areas. Extensive simulations show considerable improvement in supporting spatially variable traffic throughout the target field.
Low-power Ad Hoc systems are the most challenging aspect for secured Ad Hoc systems. The resource constrained devices were easily tampered due to the limited operated environment. Over the past decade, the usage rate of Ad Hoc systems are rapidly increased in modern communication systems. However, the security is still a research factor for Lowpower Ad Hoc systems. Offering Security and Anonymity is an important research issue in Low-power Mobile Ad Hoc Networks (LPMANET). Various anonymous routing protocols presented to maintain anonymity in adverse environment, these protocols proven significant results in Ad Hoc systems but failure to improved the anonymity efficiency in Low-power Ad hoc networks. In this paper, a Lightweight Energy Efficient Anonymous Routing (LEEAR) protocol is proposed to offer energy efficient anonymity and security in an adverse environment by combining modified zero knowledge proof, bloom filter and cryptography techniques. We designed the LEEAR protocol to determine the efficiency in-terms security and energy against routing level and traffic level attacks. We simulated the experiment in NS2 simulator the determine the results and ensure importance of the proposed LEEAR protocol in accomplishing energy efficiency and anonymity.
The flow of information among people in today's world is essential. People need to exchange data, but they also need to store larger chunks of data for future retrieval. Various business schemes have grown by feeding themselves on these assumptions. Some of them provide the needed infrastructure, such as, cables or wireless base stations in case of GSM/LTE networks, while others provide complementary storage capabilities (cloud storage services). In this paper, we introduce a Fully Distributed GRIDNET protocol (FD-GRIDNET). It facilitates a solution to a problem of motivating users to intercede in a data exchange. MANET/DTN networks were envisioned as a target environment, however we do not restrain our protocol by design only to such. FD-GRIDNET is the first fully distributed data exchange protocol, which rewards intermediaries with a cryptocurrency, one created on behalf of the described communication system itself. It constitutes a communication system with a closed economy cycle, where acting as a router earns cryptocurrency, which in turn can be used for one's own needs, such as, but not limited to - data transmission. Indeed, FD-GRIDNET can be said to facilitate a cryptocurrency of its own. It builds upon a proof-of-work concept, but introduces elements of proof-of-stake as well.
Mobile Ad hoc network (MANET) is an autonomous system of mobile hosts (nodes) connected by wireless link forming a temporary network without the aid of any established infrastructure or centralized administration. Typical applications of MANETs are: emergency and rescue operations, disaster relief efforts, military operations and exploration mission where cellular infrastructure is unavailable. The main problem of mobile ad hoc networks is to design routing protocols allowing for communication between the hosts. The dynamic nature of ad hoc networks makes this problem especially challenging. Communication in MANET is multi-hop due to limited transmission range; this decentralized operation relies on the cooperative participations of all nodes. MANETs are considered as complex system characterized by high dynamic topology, local interactions, auto-organization and emergence. Modeling and simulation are very important in the design and development of distributed interacting system because of their particular stochastic nature. This article seeks to use agent-based tools for modeling ad hoc network. We focus on Netlogo, an important tool in the modeling and simulation domain of complex system. We have successfully implemented distributed Dijkstra's shortest path algorithm to solve the routing problem. Obtained Results show the quick convergence of Dijkstra's Algorithm to shortest paths relating a source node with all accessible destinations.
Abstract : Authentication is deemed to be a critical function in the operation of tactical wireless ad hoc networks. The dynamic nature and unpredictability of these self - organizing networks requires that new security protocols be deployed that allow users to efficiently gain access to network resources without the burden of a centralized security infrastructure. Authentication protocols based on Zero - Knowledge Proof (ZKP) of identity schemes provide a means for establishing mutual trust between network entities. While many papers have looked at the virtues of ZKP - based authentication protocols from an academic perspective, little work has been carried out to actually deploy and test the protocols in fielded wireless networks. In this paper we present lessons - learned regarding the installation of ZKP - based authentication protocol on processing hardware designed for deployment on AFRL's small unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) test bed.
A Mobile Ad-hoc Network (MANET) is a group of wireless mobile nodes that dynamically form a network without any pre-established infrastructure or centralized administration, Soewito (2014). Some network hops may be needed to send a packet from one node to another node in the MANET. To do the communication between the nodes, a route has to be selected in the network, therefore it need a routing protocol that manage selection of the route. Selection route in mobile ad-hoc network is not easy because nodes always move so that the topology of network always changed every time. This is a big issue in selection route in mobile ad-hoc network because the route can be broken anytime. Moreover, MANET is more vulnerable than other wireless communication types because every mobile node serves as both the host and the router and forwards packets on behalf of each other. This study presents the analyzing and evaluation several routing algorithms and a novel scheme to build an authentication system by adding the modified zero knowledge proof algorithm to each mobile node in MANET.
Purpose This paper aims to present an approach for a bio‐inspired decentralization topology control mechanism, called force‐based genetic algorithm (FGA), where a genetic algorithm (GA) is run by each holonomic autonomous vehicle (HAV) in a mobile ad hoc network (MANET) as software agent to achieve a uniform spread of HAVs and to provide a fully connected network over an unknown geographical terrain. An HAV runs its own FGA to decide its next movement direction and speed based on local neighborhood information, such as obstacles and the number of neighbors, without a centralized control unit or global knowledge. Design/methodology/approach The objective function used in FGA is inspired by the equilibrium of the molecules in physics where each molecule tries to be in the balanced position to spend minimum energy to maintain its position. In this approach, a virtual force is assumed to be applied by the neighboring HAVs to a given HAV. At equilibrium, the aggregate virtual force applied to an HAV by its neighbors should sum up to zero. If the aggregate virtual force is not zero, it is used as a fitness value for the HAV. The value of this virtual force depends on the number of neighbors within the communication range of R com and the distance among them. Each chromosome in our GA‐based framework is composed of speed and movement direction. The FGA is independently run by each HAV as a topology control mechanism and only utilizes information from neighbors and local terrain to make movement and speed decisions to converge towards a uniform distribution of HAVs. The authors developed an analytical model, simulation software and several testbeds to study the convergence properties of the FGA. Findings The paper finds that coverage‐centric, bio‐inspired, mobile node deployment algorithm ensures effective sensing coverage for each mobile node after initial deployment. The FGA is also an energy‐aware self‐organization framework since it reduces energy consumption by eliminating unnecessary excessive movements. Fault‐tolerance is another important feature of the GA‐based approach since the FGA is resilient to losses and malfunctions of HAVs. Furthermore, the analytical results show that the authors' bio‐inspired approach is effective in terms of convergence speed and area coverage uniformity. As seen from the experimental results, the FGA delivers promising results for uniform autonomous mobile node distribution over an unknown geographical terrain. Originality/value The proposed decentralized and bio‐inspired approach for autonomous mobile nodes can be used as a real‐time topology control mechanism for commercial and military applications since it adapts to local environment rapidly but does not require global network knowledge.
Based on distributed key management, the trust mechanism of the local group, zero-knowledge proof and timestamp exchange mechanism of OLSR routing protocol, a new lightweight and robust group-key management protocol for Ad Hoc Networks is proposed. the protocol achives the advantages of low energy consumption, high efficiency and high availability by reducing both the number of control messages and the energy spent with cryptographic operations. Then, we demonstrates the security and anti-offensive of the protocol through safety analysis. Finally, simulation results show that the proposed protocol can ensure the security of Ad Hoc networks with a very low-impact on the performance of secure routing protocol.
In this paper, we present a delay based routing algorithm for ad hoc wireless networks. In an ad hoc environment there is no wired infrastructure and the mobile hosts work as a router to maintain the status about the connectivity. A mobile ad hoc network is an autonomous collection of mobile users (nodes) that communicates over relatively bandwidthconstrained wireless links. Each node is equipped with wireless receivers and transmitters using antennas that may be omnidirectional, highly directional, or possibly steer able. Due to nodal mobility, the network topology may change rapidly and unpredictably over time. The network is decentralized, where network organization and message delivery must be executed by the nodes themselves, i.e., routing functionally will be incorporated into mobile nodes. The design of the network protocols for mobile ad hoc network is a complex issue. These networks need efficient distributed algorithm to determine network organization (connectivity), link scheduling, and routing. But, the existing routing algorithms designed for ad hoc wireless networks have slow response, excessive overhead and become unsuitable under the above considerations. The full approach, for referring the internal state of the network relies on Round Trip Time (RTT) measurements only. We consider the RTT mean and RTT variance as fuzzy input variables and delay as a fuzzy output variable. Under such condition the performance of the proposed algorithm is tested. It is shown that under these conditions the algorithm gives better results. The proposed routing algorithm is simulated in MATLAB 6.5.
With the development of wireless communication technology, the applications of Mobile ad hoc network (MANET) have been constantly expanded. However, MANET faces many security threats because of their own properties. Authentication is the fundamental service to protect the security of MANET, and in many applications users typically want personal information kept confidential, so that it required the anonymity in the process of authentication. In this paper, we present a distributed anonymous authentication scheme for MANET from the bilinear maps, based on the technique of secret share and zero-knowledge proof, solves the authentication and key management problems of MANET which is lack of fixed infrastructure, achieves the anonymity in the process of authentication and key transfer. Meanwhile the scheme shortens the signature length, thus reduces the computational cost of nodes that is important to the MANET which are often composed of weak or resource-limited devices.
This paper presents a distributed anonymous authentication scheme for MANET based on the technique of group signature, secret share and zero-knowledge proof. The scheme takes advantage of the distributed certificate management to solve the authentication and key management problems of MANET which is lack of fixed infrastructure. Meanwhile, the scheme adopts the efficient group signature presented by Camenisch and Stadler, achieved the anonymity in the process of authentication and public key transmission. In the case of a later dispute, the group manager can reveal the identity of node by opening its signature. Besides anonymity and traceability, the scheme also has the property of unforgeability and robustness.
An identity-based threshold key management scheme without secure channel is proposed for ad hoc network. The master private key, which is shared among all nodes by the Shamir's secret sharing scheme, is produced by all nodes when network is formed. The nodes' public keys are derived from their identities. In order to get the private key, each node needs to prove their identity to distributed CAs using a zero-knowledge proof protocol to get the share of private key. Compared with former schemes, our scheme doesn't need any local registration authority(LRA), which is easy to be compromised by adversary. When a node leaves the network, shares of the master private key would be renewed. In the end, we prove our scheme is correct and secure.
Pervasive computing is an exciting and blooming research field, in which innovative techniques and applications are continuously emerging and aim to provide ambient and personalized services to users with high quality. Ad hoc networks are wireless, self-organizing systems formed by co-operating nodes within communication range of each other that form temporary networks. Their topology is dynamic, decentralized, ever changing and the nodes may move around arbitrarily. The last few years have witnessed a wealth of research ideas on ad hoc networking that are moving rapidly into implemented standards. Technology under development for ad hoc networks and pervasive computing is making important steps toward this end goal possible. However, the security concerns remain a serious impediment to widespread adoption. The underlying radio communication medium for wireless network provides serious exposure to attacks against wireless networks. Wireless ad hoc networks usually cannot depend on traditional infrastructure found in enterprise environments such as dependable power sources, high bandwidth, continuous connectivity, common network services, well-known membership, static configuration, system administration, and physical security. Finally, throw in malicious adversaries with Byzantine collusion threats and you have a very interesting and challenging problem. Without adequate security, enterprises will not be able to profit from the use of wireless ad hoc networks and pervasive computing environment, defense organizations might be unable to guarantee the safety of their personnel in battlefield scenarios, and wireless ad hoc networks and pervasive computing will remain on the drawing board even if the other problems associated with them are solved. This special issue is focused on various aspects of security in ad hoc networks and pervasive computing research and development to report both in-depth research and applications-oriented works. The special issue is intended to foster state-of-the-art research in the area of security in ad hoc networks and pervasive computing. The aim of this special issue is to present a collection of high quality research papers that report the latest research advances in security of ad hoc. In this special issue, we selected seven papers, which can demonstrate advanced works in this field. A detailed overview of the selected works is given below. The first paper, An RC4-Based Lightweight Protocol for Secure Data Transmission on Resource-Constrained Devices, presents a simple, lightweight, but robust security protocol based on the backward property of RC4 stream cipher. The proposed protocol provides data confidentiality, data authentication, data integrity, and data freshness with low overhead and simple operation, allows packets be received in an arbitrary order, achieves semantic security, and does not require frequent key renew. The second paper, PAPA-UIC: A Design Approach and a Framework for Secure Mobile Ad-hoc Networks, proposes a new design approach and a framework for securing a practical type of MANETs. The framework is named PAPA-UIC. The paper proposes a secure routing protocol and solutions to general problems of identity-based cryptography. The routing protocol has several improvements over existing ones. The third paper, RFIDGuard: A Lightweight Privacy and Authentication Protocol for Passive RFID Tags, introduces a protocol which requires little computation and achieves both privacy and authentication simultaneously. The lightweight and secure nature of the RFIDGuard protocol make it particularly suitable for supply chain management. The fourth paper, Using Hidden Markov Model to Detect Rogue Access Points, proposes a statistical based approach to detect rogue access points using a Hidden Markov Model, which is applied to passively measure packet-header data collected at a gateway router. The main idea is to process the sequence of packet traces in order to distinguish the normal packets from the abnormal ones. The approach is scalable and non-intrusive, requiring little deployment cost and effort, and is easy to manage and maintain. The fifth paper, Defending Sybil Attacks Based on Neighboring Relations in Wireless Sensor Networks, develops a mechanism to protect a WSN from Sybil attacks without using any authentication-based method. Furthermore, the detection approach requires no specialized hardware or support devices. The feature that a malicious node creates many fake identities is exploited to distinguish legitimate nodes from Sybil/malicious nodes. Since all of the fake identities forged by the same malicious node are associated with the same physical device, they will have the same legitimate neighbors. Therefore, by collecting the neighboring information of the suspected victim of the Sybil attacks, the legitimate nodes which are the neighbors of the malicious nodes can be determined. In contrast to existing protection schemes, this approach has no requirement for shared keys, secret information, or special hardware support. The sixth paper, An Autonomous Attestation Token to Secure Mobile Agents in Disaster Response, introduces the Autonomous Attestation Token (AAT), a hardware token for mobile computing devices that is capable of guaranteeing the trusted state of a limited set of devices without relying on a networked service. The paper proposes a Local Attestation protocol with user interaction that in conjunction with the AAT prevents unauthorized access to an emergency mobile agent platform. In addition, the paper sketches a possible solution which integrates trusted computing to leverage ad hoc networks and peer-to-peer systems to provide a robust communication platform. The seventh paper, Building Advanced Applications with the Belgian eID, introduces the Belgian Electronic Identity Card. The card enables Belgian citizens to digitally prove their identity and to sign electronic documents. This paper presents two reusable extensions to the Belgian eID technology that opens up new opportunities for application developers. First, a secure and ubiquitously accessible remote storage service is presented. Second, it is shown how the eID card can be used to issue new certificates. The feasibility and reusability of both extensions are validated through the development of several applications in different domains. In conclusion, this issue of Security in Ad hoc offers a groundbreaking view into the recent advances in secure ad hoc networks. This issue offers both academic and industry appeal the former as a basis toward future research directions, and the latter toward viable commercial applications. Finally, we would like to express our gratitude to the Editor-in-Chief, Professor HsiaoHwa Chen for his advice, patience, and encouragements since the beginning until the final stage. Special thanks go to Michelle in Wiley during the production. We thank all anonymous reviewers who spent much of their precious time reviewing all the papers. Their timely reviews and comments greatly helped us select the best papers in this special issue. We also thank all authors who have submitted their papers for consideration for this issue. We hope you will enjoy reading the great selection of papers in this issue.