Enabling Online Quantitative Security Analysis in 6LoWPAN Networks
Alex Lacerda Ramos, Ronaldo T. P. Milfont, Raimir Holanda Filho, Joel J. P. C. Rodrigues · IEEE Internet of Things Journal · 2019
IPv6 over low-power wireless personal area networks (6LoWPANs) are comprised of resource-constrained nodes equipped with sensing capabilities that communicate with each other and are linked to the Internet contributing to the Internet of Things (IoT). Because of their constraints, these objects are exposed to attacks from inside the 6LoWPANs. Typically, intrusion detection systems (IDSs), are employed to identify such attacks. However, the alarms generated by IDSs provide no information about the severity of the attacks or to which extent the attacks affect the sensor data routed by the nodes. To address these issues, this paper proposes the node security quantification (NSQ), a probabilistic model which makes it possible to quantitatively assess, in an online manner, the security status of the constrained nodes and the sensor data users consume. The security awareness capability provided by this model can support the security-related decision-making process of both network administrators and users. The obtained simulation results demonstrate that NSQ quantifies node and data security with high accuracy, while keeping performance and energy overhead very low.