AWF-NA: A Complete Solution for Tampered Packet Detection in VANETs

In vehicular ad hoc networks (VANETs), it is vital to ensure that tampered data packets, especially safety-related ones, are detected and stopped from further propagation. To this end, we propose a novel scheme, autonomous watchdog formation enabled by 2-hop neighborhood awareness (AWF-NA), to ensure nodes automatically functioning as watchdogs to monitor the behaviors of the relaying nodes. Unlike existing schemes [1-4], it aims to detect and react at each hop, and stop any tampered packet from further propagation in spite of dishonest watchdogs and relaying nodes. At each hop, the neighbors of the relaying node and the receiver node autonomously select eligible watchdogs among themselves based on local information provided by 2-hop neighborhood awareness. With 2-hop neighborhood awareness each node knows all the neighbors within its 2 hops, which provides it with necessary information to act according to the heuristic rules in AWF-NA. Induction-based proof shows that AWF-NA can detect all potential attacks of data packet tampering. Theoretical analysis indicates that it achieves good balance of desirable performance and authentic packet relaying.