Security threats and intrusion detection at the MAC layer in 802.15.4 sensor networks
Jobaida Begum · Mspace (University of Manitoba) · 2007
Security is a key concern in wireless sensor networks (WSN), despite the many chal- lenges posed by the use of the wireless medium, battery pov/er, and devices with limited computing and communication capabilities.In particular, the MAC layer of WSNs is vulnerable to security threats that cause denial of service in the network.In this thesis, we address the security problems in the MAC layer of WSNs.We investigate possible MAC layer attacks and study the impact of those attacks on the recently introduced IEEE 802.15.4 communication technology.We investigate the feasibility of a simple, traffic based intrusion detection method for detecting the anomalous activities in the MAC layer.In order to filter out some of the inherent variability of traffic arrival patterns, \Me use simple exponential averaging that min- imizes storage and computational requirements.We propose meâsures to improve the accuracy of the detection algorithm, and investigate the performance of the algo- rithm under different traffic patterns of regular devices.Our simulation results show that the proposed intrusion detection method implemented in this manner oDerates quickly and efficiently, and thus provides improved security to wSN users.