Key Management Functions Research Articles

An Energy-Efficient Security Node-Based Key Management Protocol for WSN

A security node-based key management protocol is proposed for cluster-based sensor networks. Member nodes and cluster heads are responsible for data collection and transmission. Security nodes are responsible for key management. Security nodes restrain key management function of cluster heads, and reduce damage of captured cluster heads. Generation of security nodes and different kinds of keys is described. Performance analysis and simulation show that the proposed key management protocol consumes less energy, and its delay time of key generation is short. At the same time, the protocol can provide more collaborative authentication security for keys. It has strong resilience against node capture, and can support large scale network.

Short-Term Multi-Cell Dynamic Resource Allocation in Future Cellular Networks

In future cellular system, it is becoming more challenging to optimize the radio resource management and maximize the system capacity whilst meeting the required quality of service from user's point of view. Traditional schemes have approached this problem mainly focusing on resources within a cell and to large extent ignoring effects of multi-cell architecture. For multi-cell systems employing intra-cell orthogonal communication channels, inter-cell interference mitigation techniques are expected to be one of the key radio resource management functions. In this paper, we propose a multi-cell coordinated and un-coordinated dynamic resource sharing algorithms and reuse techniques among base station/ relay station cells. The sub carrier allocation and power allocation are performed on the basic of sum-rate maximization, by considering the load over the cell (3-sector cell). The simulation results show the performance comparison between both coordinated and un-coordinated resource allocation schemes with different sum-rate maximization algorithms.

Service Control Layer (SCL): Enabling Rule-based Control and Enrichment in Next-Generation Telecom Service Delivery

Telecom operators have started to make significant investments towards evolving their Service Delivery Platforms (SDPs) to a next-generation architecture, based on IP technologies and standards such as Session Initiation Protocol (SIP), Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) and increasingly, Web 2.0. These investments are tightly coupled with demands for network middleware infrastructures that allow for rapid service creation and execution, efficient service orchestration and management, and flexible exposure of core network capabilities as services. A key service management functionality of integrated SDP is IP-based service control. Traditionally, service control functionalities have been vertically integrated with service logic and hence, are inflexible and costly to maintain and upgrade. IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS), which defines the overlay service architecture for next generation networks, stopped short in designing a flexible service control component. In this paper, we present the design and implementation of a service control layer (SCL) for IMS networks, which is flexible on two fronts, viz., the SIP based service modeling for fine grained service control and the programmability of the controlling action implemented by external business services. We present the detailed description of the design and implementation of SCL followed by the results obtained from a performance evaluation exercise that evaluates the scalability of SCL.

Web enablement of a Water Safety Plan via the municipal-based electronic Water Quality Management System (eWQMS)

Despite a good legislative framework, South Africa faces significant challenges in the sustainable provision of adequate and safe water services. To improve the situation, South Africa's Department of Water Affairs (DWA) and other water sector partners undertook initiatives to assist municipalities with operation and management of water services. By way of example, in 2006, the municipal engineering oriented electronic Water Quality Management System (eWQMS) was implemented, providing municipalities with a platform for loading drinking water quality data and tracking performance of key water services management functions. Following this in 2008, DWA introduced an incentive-based regulatory programme, Blue Drop Certification (BDC), and the associated regulatory drinking water quality information system, the Blue Drop System (BDS) which is, for example, populated with data loaded by municipalities onto eWQMS. An integral part of BDC is the development of Water Safety Plans (WSPs). Due to the challenges faced by municipalities in developing WSPs, the Water Research Commission (WRC) saw a need to assist municipalities, and subsequently a generic Water Safety Plan for Small Community Water Supplies was developed. The WRC also saw the need to develop an easy-to-use WSP tool for municipalities. The eWQMS was selected as the platform for making the tool available. This paper presents the development of a web-enabled WSP tool on the eWQMS which ultimately will provide the information to the BDS.

Architecture Firms and the Role of Brand Management

The core business of architects is design. Design supports brand strategy in most other types of firms. Where design is the core business, brand follows design. The brand originates from design quality and the service reputation of the firm. Brand and marketing are underdeveloped areas in architecture firms, and brand is underdeveloped in theory and practice. The dimensions of brand management are examined conceptually and through five architecture firms that have developed vertically integrated service strategies, design–construction–development, to realize high-quality design in the end-product. Design solicits an emotional response from clients, creating a sense of self. Thus, brand identification and management are instigated, reinforced through implicit relationship marketing, despite explicit professional disdain for marketing being prevalent, especially for strong ideas and strong ambition firms. Key account management functions are found to play an integrating role. A primary conclusion is that design firms would benefit from brand development through the explicit relationship marketing generally and key account management roles in particular to further enhance brand management and design through relationship marketing.

Building load management using cluster and statistical analyses

Building energy management systems has become very significant to monitor and control loads, mainly due to the tariff and demand side management programs. This technology allows the performance of key energy management functions such as organizing energy use data, identifying energy consumption anomalies, managing energy costs, and automating demand response strategies. Load management techniques allow the energy manager to reshape the building load curve and reduce the peak demand. The synthesis of load shapes is one of the most critical steps in evaluating load management programs. The energy manager should be able to recognize the typical shape of the daily load curve in order to manage the energy use. This paper presents a methodology to perform the synthesis of load shapes. On that purpose, it is essential to identify typical daily load curves as well as the best way to find their representative model. By getting to know the typical load curves of a building, an energy manager may predict load and peak demands. Results have shown the efficiency of clustering technology in the analysis of time series data such as load curves. Using historical data, the total accumulated energy in the end of the day as well as the maximum peak demand of the day may be predicted.

RSU-Based Distributed Key Management (RDKM) For Secure Vehicular Multicast Communications

Although lots of research efforts have focused on group key management (GKM) for secure multicast, existing GKM schemes are inadequate for vehicle communication (VC) systems since they incur unnecessary rekeying overhead without considering the characteristics of VC systems such as Vehicle-to-Infrastructure communications and a great number of high mobility vehicles. Therefore, we propose a GKM scheme, called RSU-based decentralized key management (RDKM), dedicated for the multicast services in the VC systems. The RDKM scheme significantly reduces the rekeying overhead through delegating a part of the key management functions to the road-side infrastructure units (RSUs) and through updating the key encryption keys (KEKs) within a RSU. The performance of the RDKM scheme is analyzed in terms of communication overhead and storage overhead each of which has a strong impact on the performance of GKM. Furthermore, we propose an optimization algorithm that minimizes the weighted sum of the communication and the storage overhead, called the GKM overhead (GKMO), by appropriately determining the design parameters. The numerical results from the extensive analysis demonstrate that the RDKM scheme outperforms the existing GKM schemes in terms of the GKMO.

Comparison of clinical knowledge management capabilities of commercially-available and leading internally-developed electronic health records

BackgroundWe have carried out an extensive qualitative research program focused on the barriers and facilitators to successful adoption and use of various features of advanced, state-of-the-art electronic health records (EHRs) within large, academic, teaching facilities with long-standing EHR research and development programs. We have recently begun investigating smaller, community hospitals and out-patient clinics that rely on commercially-available EHRs. We sought to assess whether the current generation of commercially-available EHRs are capable of providing the clinical knowledge management features, functions, tools, and techniques required to deliver and maintain the clinical decision support (CDS) interventions required to support the recently defined "meaningful use" criteria.MethodsWe developed and fielded a 17-question survey to representatives from nine commercially available EHR vendors and four leading internally developed EHRs. The first part of the survey asked basic questions about the vendor's EHR. The second part asked specifically about the CDS-related system tools and capabilities that each vendor provides. The final section asked about clinical content.ResultsAll of the vendors and institutions have multiple modules capable of providing clinical decision support interventions to clinicians. The majority of the systems were capable of performing almost all of the key knowledge management functions we identified.ConclusionIf these well-designed commercially-available systems are coupled with the other key socio-technical concepts required for safe and effective EHR implementation and use, and organizations have access to implementable clinical knowledge, we expect that the transformation of the healthcare enterprise that so many have predicted, is achievable using commercially-available, state-of-the-art EHRs.

Control and Management Issues in All-Optical Networks

As more intelligence and control mechanisms are added into optical networks, the need for the deployment of a reliable and secure management system using efficient control techniques has become increasingly relevant. While some of available control and management methods are applicable to different types of network architectures, many of them are not adequate for all-optical networks. These emerging transparent optical networks have particularly unique features and requirements in terms of security and quality of service thus requiring a much more targeted approach in terms of network management. In particular, the peculiar behavior of all-optical components and architectures bring forth a new set of challenges for network security. In this article, we briefly overview security and management issues that arise in all-optical networks. We then discuss the key management functions that are responsible for ensuring the secure and continued functioning of the network. Consequently, we present a framework for the realization of an appropriate management system that can meet the challenges posed by all-optical networks .

Performance analysis of a reuse partitioning technique for multi‐channel cellular systems supporting elastic services

AbstractFor multi‐cell systems employing intra‐cell orthogonal communication channels, inter‐cell interference mitigation techniques are expected to be one of the key radio resource management functions. In this paper we propose and analyze a simple reuse partitioning technique (with random and coordinated resource block allocation in neighbor cells) that is able to reduce inter‐cell interference. We propose a model that is able to take into account that sessions dynamically enter and leave the system. Rigid sessions require a class‐specific fixed number of resource blocks, while elastic sessions can enter the system if a minimum number of resources are allocated to them. In this rather general setting (and using the example of a system employing frequency division for multiple access) we analyze the system performance in terms of the expected number of channel collisions, the session‐blocking probabilities, the signal‐to‐interference‐and‐noise ratio (SINR) and packet error rate performance. We present numerical results on the various trade‐offs between these measures (including the trade‐off between the reuse factor and the SINR performance) that provide insight into the behavior of multi‐channel cellular systems and help dimensionalize the parameters of a reuse partitioned system. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Engagement versus disengagement: How structural and commercially-based regulatory changes have increased government risks in federal acquisitions

The purpose of this working paper is to highlight the challenges and associated risks Federal contracting officers face while conducting business under commercially-based contracting legislation and, with concurrent reductions in the acquisition workforce, the potential risks these changes place on the taxpayer. The researcher's thorough review of published articles, along with collegiate discussions with prominent practitioners and academics indicates that the Federal Government may be exposed to increased risks due to recent commercial-practice legislation and structural changes in the acquisition work force. The past decade-long wave of acquisition work-force reductions and commercially inspired acquisition reforms has created a responsive and progressive business environment. Yet, it has done so at the cost of the Federal government becoming less "engaged" in key oversight and management functions. This disengagement may be exposing Federal contracting officers and taxpayers to greater financial, programmatic and performance risks.

Dynamic combinatorial key management scheme for sensor networks

AbstractSecuring sensor networks has received much attention in the last few years. In a typical field deployment, a sensor network self‐organizes, closely interacts with its physical environment, and works unattended possibly in a hostile environment such as a battlefield. In such environments, sensor networks are subject to node capture as well as a myriad of other attacks. Constrained energy, memory, and computational capabilities of sensor nodes mandate a clever design of security solutions to minimize overhead while maintaining secure communications over the lifespan of the network. In this paper, we propose a Dynamic Combinatorial Key management scheme, DCK, to provide efficient, scalable, and survivable dynamic keying in a clustered sensor network with a large number of sensor nodes. DCK employs the Exclusion‐Basis Systems (EBS) as the underlying framework for key management at both the cluster and the sensor node levels. DCK enhances network security by localizing cluster key management functions, thus, limiting the impact of sensor node capture to the attacked cluster. Within a cluster, DCK decouples key generation, assignment, and distribution, and distributes the key management tasks among cluster nodes. Simulation results show that DCK is efficient in terms of energy consumption and storage. Also, it significantly outperforms other dynamic keying schemes, in particular with regards to energy consumed in key refreshment and re‐keying after node capture. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Dynamic radio resource allocation for 3G and beyond mobile wireless networks

Next generation of wireless cellular networks aim at supporting a diverse range of multimedia services to mobile users with guaranteed quality of service (QoS). Resource allocation and call admission control (CAC) are key management functions in future 3G and 4G cellular networks, in order to provide multimedia applications to mobile users with QoS guarantees and efficient resource utilization. There are two main strategies for radio resource allocations in cellular wireless networks known as complete partitioning (CP) and complete sharing (CS). In this paper, theses strategies are extended for operation in 3G and beyond network. First, two CS-based call admission controls, referred to herein as queuing priority call admission control (QP-CAC) and hybrid priority call admission control (HP-CAC), and one CP-based call admission control referred to as complete partitioning call admission control (CP-CAC) are presented. Then, this study proposes a novel dynamic procedure, referred to as the dynamic prioritized uplink call admission control (DP-CAC) designed to overcome the shortcomings of CS and CP-based CACs. Results indicate the superiority of DP-CAC as it is able to achieve a better balance between system utilization, revenue, and quality of service provisioning. CS-based algorithms achieve the best system utilization and revenue at the expense of serious unfairness for the traffic classes with diverse QoS requirements. DP-CAC manages to attain equal system utilization and revenue to CS-based algorithms without the drawbacks in terms of fairness and service differentiation.

Location-Aware Combinatorial Key Management Scheme for Clustered Sensor Networks

Recent advances in wireless sensor networks (WSNs) are fueling the interest in their application in a wide variety of sensitive settings such as battlefield surveillance, border control, and infrastructure protection. Data confidentiality and authenticity are critical in these settings. However, the wireless connectivity, the absence of physical protection, the close interaction between WSNs and their physical environment, and the unattended deployment of WSNs make them highly vulnerable to node capture as well as a wide range of network-level attacks. Moreover, the constrained energy, memory, and computational capabilities of the employed sensor nodes limit the adoption of security solutions designed for wire-line and wireless networks. In this paper, we focus on the management of encryption keys in large-scale clustered WSNs. We propose a novel distributed key management scheme based on exclusion basis systems (EBS); a combinatorial formulation of the group key management problem. Our scheme is termed SHELL because it is scalable, hierarchical, efficient, location-aware, and light-weight. Unlike most existing key management schemes for WSNs, SHELL supports rekeying and, thus, enhances network security and survivability against node capture. SHELL distributes key management functionality among multiple nodes and minimizes the memory and energy consumption through trading off the number of keys and rekeying messages. In addition, SHELL employs a novel key assignment scheme that reduces the potential of collusion among compromised sensor nodes by factoring the geographic location of nodes in key assignment. Simulation results demonstrate that SHELL significantly boosts the network resilience to attacks while conservatively consuming nodes' resources

Multicast Copyright Protection System Based on a Trusted Soft-Engine

One of the main problems that remains to be solved in pay-per-view Internet services is copyright protection. In Internet services such as near video on-demand, where multicast is used, watermarking can be directly applied. On the other hand, multicast fingerprinting has been seldom studied because delivering different marked content for different receivers seems a contradiction with multicast basics. In this paper we present a solution to prevent unauthorized redistribution of content in multicast scenarios. The system is based on a trusted soft-engine embedded in the receiver and co-managed by the content distributor. The trusted soft-engine is responsible for the client-side multicast key management functions. It only will allow the decryption and displaying of the actual data if it has previously inserted a fingerprinting mark with the identity of the decoder.

Optimal Resource Allocation and Adaptive Call Admission Control for Voice/Data Integrated Cellular Networks

Resource allocation and call admission control (CAC) are key management functions in future cellular networks, in order to provide multimedia applications to mobiles users with quality of service (QoS) guarantees and efficient resource utilization. In this paper, we propose and analyze a priority based resource sharing scheme for voice/data integrated cellular networks. The unique features of the proposed scheme are that 1) the maximum resource utilization can be achieved, since all the leftover capacity after serving the high priority voice traffic can be utilized by the data traffic; 2) a Markovian model for the proposed scheme is established, which takes account of the complex interaction of voice and data traffic sharing the total resources; 3) optimal CAC parameters for both voice and data calls are determined, from the perspective of minimizing resource requirement and maximizing new call admission rate, respectively; 4) load adaption and bandwidth allocation adjustment policies are proposed for adaptive CAC to cope with traffic load variations in a wireless mobile environment. Numerical results demonstrate that the proposed CAC scheme is able to simultaneously provide satisfactory QoS to both voice and data users and maintain a relatively high resource utilization in a dynamic traffic load environment. The recent measurement-based modeling shows that the Internet data file size follows a lognormal distribution, instead of the exponential distribution used in our analysis. We use computer simulations to demonstrate that the impact of the lognormal distribution can be compensated for by conservatively applying the Markovian analysis results.

An Overlay Architecture for Managing Lightpaths in Optically Routed Networks

Existing solutions for optically routed networks (ORNs) lack certain key management functions available to electronically routed networks. In particular, ORNs have extremely limited capabilities to trace the path of an optical signal through the network. In this paper, we present a method for embedding path identification and other management information into the transport stream in such a way that the management information can be read by a low-bandwidth, low-cost receiver, without having to terminate or decode the full-rate payload stream. We outline a method for embedding such management information, using a digital coding process at the transmitter, and two distinct digital decoding processes for receiving the management and payload data streams, respectively. Feasibility of the method is demonstrated by computing the bit-error performance of example codes under realistic operating conditions, including multiple management streams in multiwavelength systems.

Management of Urban Road Networks Following Man-Made or Natural Disasters

Lessons learned from post-disaster conditions after major urban earthquakes are used to develop roadway management strategies for other man-made or natural disasters. Events considered are those which cause major disruptions to the roadway network but would not necessarily require evacuation of the population. These include terrorist attacks, earthquakes, tornadoes, widespread flooding, etc. Events such as nuclear or chemical incidents or approaching hurricanes, which require evacuation of communities, are not considered. Key management functions of an Emergency Operations Center such as damage inventory and detour plans are addressed. The main objectives are to mitigate the impact of such disasters on the population while accelerating the return to normalcy. The findings are incorporated into a GIS decision tool which allows editing of the roadway network to reflect roadway closures and capacity reductions. The updated network information is then used to determine optimal traffic detour and diversion strategies to best utilize the remaining network capacity.

Internationalising internet governance: does ICANN have a role to play?

From its inception in the 1960s, Internet governance has been a largely ad hoc affair. Private‐sector United States‐based bodies have played crucial roles in developing the Internet, the most recognisable being the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), a non‐profit, private‐sector American corporation formed in 1998 to take responsibility for key Internet management functions. ICANN's structure and, indeed, its very existence, reflects the Internet's origins within the American academic sector, and the dominance thus far of the United States in the growth of the Internet. This structure now faces a challenge from the growing internationalisation of the Internet, which necessitates governance on a more international basis. At the World Summit on the Information Society in December 2003, it was agreed that a United Nations working party should be set up to review Internet governance. This article will consider the arguments for change, and will conclude that greater internationalisation of Internet governance is required if the Internet is to achieve its full potential in developing countries, as well as in the developed world. Models for international regulation will be considered, and the article will conclude by proposing a model that will best satisfy both the need for change, and the need to protect the essentially dynamic nature of the Internet from bureaucratic government intervention.

Integrated Management Systems for Enhancing Project Quality, Safety and Environment

Over the last thirty years the construction industry has fully embedded quality management systems (QMS) within construction project management. In recent years, environmental regulation and health and safety legislation have introduced additional dedicated management requirements – environmental management systems (EMS) and health and safety management systems (H&SMS). It has been suggested that management systems, in particular those used for quality assurance, have been somewhat bureaucratic and of questionable value to construction project management. The need exists for enhanced systems that enable a contracting organisation to control the key management functions of quality, together with environment and safety with maximum effectiveness and minimum bureaucracy. The findings presented in this paper show that a reconfigured approach could bring together these individual and often separate functions within an Integrated Management System (IMS). The concept of IMS is now an emerging management approach within construction following the lead by manufacturing and UK contractors are already considering its application. This is supported by certification bodies who have introduced the integrated management system assessment or IMSA. A number of UK contracting organisations are at the forefront of both national and international IMS developments. Based on primary questionnaire and interview survey data from UK contracting organisations, this paper examines the purpose, characteristics, properties and development framework of a single system approach, or the IMS for quality, safety and environment, and considers its application by contracting organisations.