Secure Diffusion for Wireless Sensor Networks

Data dissemination is an indispensible protocol component for the emerging large-scale sensor networks. In this paper, we propose a secure data dissemination protocol that enhances directed diffusion to operate in the presence of compromised sensors. Our proposed solution, secure diffusion, utilizes a novel security primitive called location-binding keys, and exploits the available end-to-end feedback loop in directed diffusion. In secure diffusion, sensor nodes use pairwise neighbor keys to establish secure gradients, and the sink uses location-binding keys to authenticate the received sensing data. By differentiating authentic data from fabricated ones, the sink can selectively reinforce data paths and assist intermediate nodes in local reinforcement decisions to combat compromised nodes. Our security analysis shows that, in the presence of compromised nodes, secure diffusion can ensure both high-quality delivery of authentic data and local containment of malicious traffic.