An efficient rekeying scheme for multicast and broadcast (M&B) in mobile WiMAX

Abstract

Mobile WiMAX (IEEE 802.16e) is an emerging technology for wireless broadband access network. It provides wider converge and higher bandwidth than conventional wireless technologies. Multicast and Broadcast (M&B) in WiMAX are suitable for multimedia applications such as Pay-TV system because multimedia providers can efficiently distribute the same contents to the users within the same M&B group. Although IEEE 802.16e has defined Multicast/Broadcast Rekeying Algorithm (MBRA) to secure M&B, recent research indicates that MBRA is insecure. In this paper, we propose an efficient rekeying scheme which depends on Linear Ordering of Receivers (LORE) to protect M&B group communication. Our scheme requires O(1) messages for rekeying and addresses the security problem of MBRA. Therefore, our rekeying scheme is suitable for protecting large dynamic groups such as M&B groups.