Enhancing Fuel Station Cybersecurity: Securing IoT Devices and Cloud Data
Rohith Varma Vegesna · Journal of Artificial Intelligence Machine Learning and Data Science · 2023
BackgroundFuel stations are increasingly adopting IoT-based devices, including fuel dispensers, ATG systems and payment terminals, to improve operational efficiency.These devices generate and transmit real-time data to cloud-based platforms for analytics, monitoring and inventory management.However, the integration of IoT devices introduces cybersecurity risks, including unauthorized data access, data tampering and denial-of-service attacks.These threats are exacerbated by the lack of standardized security protocols across different IoT manufacturers, increasing vulnerabilities within the fuel station network.Traditional authentication methods such as API keys and certificates provide a certain level of security, but they remain susceptible to credential leakage, man-in-the-middle attacks and brute-force exploitation.Furthermore, fuel stations often operate with legacy systems that were not designed with modern cybersecurity principles in mind, making it difficult to A B S T R A C TThe increasing adoption of IoT-enabled fuel dispensers and Automated Tank Gauge (ATG) systems has introduced significant cybersecurity challenges.These vulnerabilities expose fuel stations to potential threats such as unauthorized access, data breaches and cyber-attacks.The growing number of connected devices in fuel stations necessitates a robust security approach that prevents unauthorized access to critical infrastructure and sensitive data.This paper presents a comprehensive approach to securing IoT devices and cloud data in fuel stations through the implementation of a custom authorizer Lambda function in AWS.This authorizer acts as a central authentication and access control mechanism that verifies each device's credentials before allowing interaction with AWS services.The proposed solution enforces authentication and authorization policies for all IoT devices interacting with AWS services, ensuring secure data transmission and resource access.The methodology incorporates encryption, role-based access control and automated threat detection to mitigate cybersecurity risks.Additionally, the custom authorizer integrates JSON Web Token (JWT)-based authentication, ensuring that each request is validated dynamically, thus preventing session hijacking and replay attacks.A case study evaluates the proposed system's effectiveness in real-world deployments.The findings suggest that integrating a custom authorizer enhances security, reduces unauthorized access and improves overall system resilience.The paper highlights the advantages of using a JWT-based approach for authentication, improving scalability and security while minimizing computational overhead.The results demonstrate that the proposed solution can significantly enhance cybersecurity for IoT-enabled fuel stations by preventing unauthorized device access and ensuring data integrity.