Title :
Secrecy beyond encryption: obfuscating transmission signatures in wireless communications
Author :
Rahbari, Hanif ; Krunz, Marwan
Author_Institution :
Univ. of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
Abstract :
The privacy of a wireless user and the operation of a wireless network can be threatened by the leakage of side-channel information (SCI), even when encryption and authentication are employed. In this article, we describe various passive (traffic analysis) and active (jamming) attacks that are facilitated by SCI. Our goal is to highlight the need for novel PHY-layer security techniques that can be used to complement classical encryption methods. We discuss several of these techniques along with advanced hardware that exhibits promising capabilities for countering privacy and SCI-related attacks.
Keywords :
cryptography; jamming; radio networks; telecommunication security; telecommunication traffic; PHY-layer security techniques; SCI-related attacks; active attacks; encryption methods; jamming; side-channel information; traffic analysis; transmission signatures; wireless communications; wireless network; wireless user; Communication system security; Encryption; Jamming; Payloads; Physical layer; Privacy; Wireless communication;
Journal_Title :
Communications Magazine, IEEE
DOI :
10.1109/MCOM.2015.7355566
