An energy-efficient random verification protocol for the detection of node clone attacks in wireless sensor networks

Abstract

It is easy for adversaries to mount node replication attacks due to the unattended nature of wireless sensor networks. In several replica node detection schemes, witness nodes fail to work before replicas are detected due to the lack of effective random verification. This paper presents a novel distributed detection protocol to counteract node replication attacks. Our scheme distributes node location information to multiple randomly selected cells and then linear-multicasts the information for verification from the localized cells. Simulation results show that the proposed protocol improves detection efficiency compared with various existing protocols and prolongs the lifetime of the overall network.