An Analysis of Link Layer Encryption Schemes in Wireless Sensor Networks

In this paper, we focus on secure communication in wireless sensor networks (WSNs). Specifically, we investigate different factors which affect the energy cost of link layer cryptographic security schemes, such as the payload size, the source of the initialization vector, and the channel quality. We propose an approach to evaluate the performance of cryptographic communication schemes by developing an analysis model considering these factors. The appropriateness of this model is supported by simulation results. In conclusion, we recommend cipher feedback (CFB) mode for the cipher operation, thereby achieving energy efficiency without compromising the security.