Scalable security in Wireless Sensor and Actuator Networks (WSANs): Integration re-keying with routing

Abstract

Our research aims to address the challenging security issues in Wireless Sensor and Actuator Networks (WSANs), a special type of Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs). Since WSANs have specific network constraints and data transmission requirements compared to general ad hoc networks and other wireless/wired networks, we propose to seamlessly integrate WASN security with a ripple-zone (RZ)-based routing architecture that is scalable and energy-efficient. In this research, we will also develop a two-level re-keying/re-routing schemes that cannot only adapt to a dynamic network topology but also securely update keys for each data transmission session. Moreover, to provide the security for the in-networking processing such as data aggregation in WSANs, we define a multiple-key management scheme in conjunction with our proposed Ripple-Zone routing architecture. Extensive simulations and hardware experiments have been conducted to verify the energy-efficiency and security performance of our security scheme for WSANs.