HYBRID APPROACH FOR SECURE ROUTING

USING TRUST MECHANISM

By

Parmar Vasantaben Sureshbhai

230260704002

Prof. Tejas Patel

Assistant Professor, KITRC

A Thesis submitted to
Gujarat Technological University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for
the Master of Engineering Degree in Electronics and Communication of Engineering

May-2025

Department of Electronics and communication engineering

Kalol Institute of Technology & Research center, Kalol, Ghandhinagar, Gujarat

I
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

On the submission of my thesis entitled “HYBRID APPROACH FOR SECURE

ROUTING USING TRUST MECHANISM” Mr. Tejas Patel Asst. professor, Dept. of
Electronics and communication engineering for her constant motivation and support during
the course work. I am” I would like to extend my gratitude and sincere thanks to my
supervisor Dr. Jigar Jain very thankful to her for giving me good basics in MANET during
the course work, which makes a good part of the project. I truly appreciate and value her
esteemed guidance and encouragement in the beginning. I would like to thank all others who
have consistently encouraged and gave me moral support, without whose help it would be
difficult to finish this project. I would like to thank my parents and friends for their consistent
support throughout.

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 TABLE OF CONTENT

TITLE PAGE

CERTIFICATE

COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATE

UNDERTAKEN ABOUT ORIGINALITY OF WORK

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

ABSTRACT

CHAPTER-1 INTRODUCTION

1.1 Wireless sensor networks

1.2 Background of WSNs

1.3 Advantages of wireless sensor networks

1.4 List of Routing protocol of WSNs

1.5 Summary

CHAPTR-2 LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 Introduction

2.2 Literature Review

2.3 Research Motivation

CHAPTER-3 METHODS AND TECHNIQUE

3.1 MANET (Mobile ad hoc networks)

3.2 ECC (Error control code)

3.2.1 Why ECC

3.2.2 Advantages of ECC

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 3.3 Trust Mechanisms in MANET

3.4 AES (Advanced encryption standard)

3.4.1 Why ECC in MANET

3.4.2 AES in MANET for security challenges

3.4.3 AES Implementation in MANET

3.4.4 Advantages of using AES in MANET

3.5 RSA (Rivest – shamir – Adleman)

3.5.1 Why RSA in MANET

3.5.2 Challenges of using RSA in MANET

3.5.3 Application of RSA in MANET

3.6 Hybrid Approach

CHAPTER-4 PROPOSE MODEL AND IMPLIMENTATION

CHAPTER-5 TOOLS AND TECHNOLOGY

SOFTWARE TOOLS

MATLAB 2022

CHAPTER-6 CONCLUSION

CHAPTER-7 REFERENCES

APPENDIX OF REVIEW CARD

LIST OF FIGURE

LIST OF TABLE

VII
 LIST OF FIGURE

Table no. Name of the Table

1.1 Block diagram of wireless Sensor Networks

1.2 ECC flow chart
1.3 Trust mechanism flow chart
1.4 Proposed Model
1.5 20 Nodes without attack
1.6 20 Nodes attack
1.7 50 Nodes without attack
1.8 50 Nodes attack
1.9 100 Nodes without attack
1.10 100 Nodes attack
1.11 150 Nodes without attack
1.12 150 Nodes attack
1.13 PDR ratio
1.14 Latency
1.15 Throughput
1.16 Packet loss ratio with or without encryption

LIST OF TABLE

1.1 Networks Parameter List

VIII
 ABSTRACT
In modern wireless communication networks, the challenge of securing and ensuring reliable
routing is critical, particularly due to the decentralized nature of the infrastructure and the
increasing prevalence of diverse security threats. Traditional routing protocols, while
effective in controlled environments, often fail when exposed to malicious behaviors like data
manipulation, unauthorized access, node compromise, and the introduction of faulty routing
information. These vulnerabilities lead to degraded network performance and compromised
security, particularly in wireless ad hoc networks where nodes communicate without a fixed
infrastructure or central authority. To address these challenges, trust-based routing
mechanisms have gained attention as a promising solution for enhancing network security
and reliability. These mechanisms assign trust scores to network nodes based on their past
behavior, ensuring that data is routed through trusted nodes and minimizing the impact of
malicious nodes. Trust-based routing can effectively detect and isolate compromised nodes
by adjusting trust scores dynamically, thus mitigating attacks such as Sybil, wormhole, and
blackhole attacks. This paper proposes a hybrid trust-based routing approach that combines
conventional routing protocols with trust management mechanisms, merging the benefits of
well-established protocols with enhanced security and adaptability. The hybrid approach
ensures real-time routing decisions that adapt to dynamic network conditions, such as node
mobility and topology changes, making the network more resilient to various attack vectors.
Additionally, by focusing on trusted nodes, this method optimizes network resources by
reducing the need for exhaustive route discovery and maintenance procedures, leading to
improved energy efficiency, lower operational costs, and enhanced overall performance. This
solution offers a robust and scalable approach to securing modern wireless communication
infrastructures, especially in resource-constrained, decentralized networks.

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X
 CHAPTER-1

INTRODUCTION
1.1 Wireless Sensor Network

In today's increasingly interconnected world, wireless communication networks play a vital

role in enabling seamless data exchange between devices. However, the open and
decentralized nature of these networks, such as mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs) and
wireless sensor networks (WSNs), exposes them to a variety of security threats. These threats
include malicious attacks like data manipulation, packet dropping, and unauthorized access,
which can compromise the integrity, confidentiality, and availability of the data being
transmitted. Traditional routing protocols, while effective in many scenarios, are often ill-
equipped to handle these security challenges, particularly in highly dynamic network
environments where node mobility and resource constraints are prevalent.

Figure1. Wireless Sensor Network

This image illustrates the architecture of a Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) integrated with
the Internet via a Gateway Node for communication with an end-user. The diagram highlights
how sensor nodes within a WSN collect data, which is then transmitted through a gateway
node and accessed by a user over the internet.

WSNs and growing IoT technology, in particular, may provide an open path for attackers in
application domains where CIA (confidentiality, integrity, and availability) is critical.

1
Furthermore, the recent integration and collaboration of WSNs with IoT will present security
challenges and issues. Most of the WSNs deployments in IoT are sometimes deployed in the
unattended hostile environment for gathering sensitive data or information. Therefore, data
leakage and alteration lead to cracking of privacy and security concerns in this environment.
This may also lead to users with unauthorized access to access the network and manipulate
the security and secrecy of data. In additional, most of IoT devices such as sensor nodes are
traditionally resource-constrained devices due to limitations factors such as power
consumption, memory footprint, computing abilities, and speed. This makes the complete
implementation of a cryptographic algorithms difficult due to its limitation factors. Moreover,
it makes WSNs vulnerable to variety of attacks and put the security C2 General of data at
risk. In additional, sacrificing the security and privacy of user data to an unauthorized user
with unauthorized access to critical data and information is not an option. Therefore, a certain
level of security is essential to protect user data. WSNs have a variety of security problems
and attacks due to their design, so it is often recommended to use a lightweight security
scheme to avoid the technical overheads imposed, which do not impact any of the overall
preferred network performance. The implementation of cryptographic security is needed as
the number of sensitive data and information increase drastically and easily gets manipulated
and transmitted. The need for lightweight cryptography is widely mentioned and discussed in
much literature, but there is limited information nor definition and solution for it. Lightweight
cryptography can be implemented in both software and hardware and also for resource-
constrained devices to improve the utilization of resources, computational time, power
consumption and security.

1.2 Background of Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs)

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) have emerged as a transformative technology with
widespread applications in fields like environmental monitoring, healthcare, military
surveillance, agriculture, and industrial automation. They consist of a large number of small,
low-cost, low-power sensor nodes that are capable of sensing physical or environmental
parameters (such as temperature, humidity, pressure, motion, etc.), processing data, and
transmitting this data wirelessly to a central node or base station. The key advantage of
WSNs is their ability to provide real-time monitoring of large areas without the need for a
fixed infrastructure.

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1. Key Components of WSNs

A typical Wireless Sensor Network is composed of several fundamental components:

 Sensor Nodes: These are small devices equipped with sensors, processing units
(microcontrollers), memory, communication modules (for wireless communication),
and power supply. The nodes are often deployed in large numbers to cover vast areas.
They collect and transmit data to a sink node or a base station for further processing.

 Sink Nodes (Base Stations): These are specialized nodes responsible for receiving
data from the sensor nodes, processing it, and forwarding it to a central server or
cloud for further analysis. They act as gateways between the sensor nodes and the
external network.

 Communication Infrastructure: The sensor nodes communicate with each other and
with the base station using wireless communication protocols. This can include short-
range communication protocols such as Zigbee, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, or LoRa.

 Power Supply: Since sensor nodes are often deployed in remote or inaccessible areas,
they rely on battery power or energy harvesting techniques (such as solar energy) to
operate. Energy efficiency is a critical factor in WSN design because nodes are
expected to operate for long periods without human intervention.

2. Types of WSNs

 Terrestrial WSNs: These networks are deployed on land for applications like
environmental monitoring, agriculture, and smart cities. The sensor nodes are spread
across the area of interest and are typically placed on the ground.

 Underwater WSNs: Underwater sensor networks are used in marine research and
surveillance. These WSNs involve sensor nodes that operate in underwater
environments and are capable of monitoring parameters like water temperature,
salinity, pressure, and currents.

 Mobile WSNs: In this type of network, the sensor nodes are mobile, allowing for
dynamic sensing and monitoring. The nodes can move within the network to cover

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 different areas, making them ideal for applications like battlefield surveillance and
rescue missions.

 Body Area Networks (BANs): These networks involve sensor nodes that are placed
on or inside the human body for monitoring health parameters such as heart rate,
blood pressure, and glucose levels. This type of WSN is commonly used in healthcare
applications.

3. Architecture of WSNs

The architecture of a typical Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) includes several layers, each
responsible for different functions:

 Physical Layer: This layer deals with the hardware aspects of the network, such as
the sensors, communication devices, and energy sources. It handles tasks like data
collection, signal transmission, and reception.

 Data Link Layer: Responsible for reliable communication between sensor nodes, the
data link layer ensures that data is correctly transmitted over the network. It manages
packetization, error correction, and retransmission.

 Network Layer: This layer handles routing, forwarding of packets, and node mobility
management. It is responsible for determining the best path for data transmission from
source to destination. Key routing protocols, such as AODV (Ad-hoc On-Demand
Distance Vector), DSR (Dynamic Source Routing), and LEACH (Low-Energy
Adaptive Clustering Hierarchy), are implemented at this layer.

 Transport Layer: This layer ensures that the data is reliably delivered to the
application layer. It can manage end-to-end communication, congestion control, and
flow control.

 Application Layer: This layer is responsible for the end-user interaction, where the
sensor data is presented to the user in a useful format. It handles the decision-making
process and can trigger actions based on the collected data.

4. Applications of WSNs

The diverse capabilities of WSNs have led to their adoption in a wide variety of applications:

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  Environmental Monitoring: WSNs can be used for real-time environmental
monitoring, such as tracking air quality, pollution levels, temperature, and humidity in
large areas. These networks are valuable in disaster management, wildlife monitoring,
and climate change research.

 Healthcare: WSNs are used in remote health monitoring, where sensor nodes collect
data on vital signs like heart rate, body temperature, and oxygen levels. This data is
transmitted to healthcare providers for analysis and action.

 Agriculture: In precision agriculture, WSNs monitor soil moisture, temperature, and

nutrient levels, enabling farmers to optimize irrigation and fertilization processes.
This leads to increased crop yield and reduced resource wastage.

 Military Surveillance: WSNs play a crucial role in surveillance and reconnaissance

in military applications. They are used for monitoring enemy movements, detecting
intrusions, and providing real-time situational awareness.

 Smart Cities: WSNs are integral to the development of smart cities. They monitor
infrastructure health, traffic, pollution, waste management, and water quality, leading
to efficient city management and improved quality of life.

5. Security Challenges in WSNs

Due to the nature of their deployment in unattended, often hostile environments, WSNs face a
variety of security challenges:

 Data Integrity and Authentication: Ensuring that data transmitted by sensor nodes
is authentic and has not been tampered with is a major concern. Malicious nodes can
alter the data being transmitted, which can lead to incorrect actions being taken based
on faulty information.

 Access Control: Unauthorized access to sensor nodes or the network can compromise
the entire system. Ensuring that only authorized users and nodes can interact with the
network is crucial.

 Energy Constraints: Since sensor nodes often rely on batteries for power, it is
critical to minimize energy consumption. Security mechanisms, such as encryption
and authentication, must be lightweight to prevent excessive energy usage.

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  Denial-of-Service (DoS) Attacks: Malicious nodes can disrupt network operations by
overloading nodes with traffic, draining their energy, or blocking communication
channels. This can lead to network outages and data loss.

Routing Attacks: Attackers can compromise routing protocols by introducing false routing
information, leading to misdirected traffic, energy wastage, and degraded network
performance. Common routing attacks include blackhole, wormhole, and Sybil attacks.
6. Lightweight Security Solutions for WSNs

Given the resource constraints of sensor nodes, traditional cryptographic algorithms such as
RSA or AES may be too computationally expensive for use in WSNs. Therefore, lightweight
security mechanisms are often employed. These mechanisms focus on achieving security
without placing heavy computational or energy demands on the network.

 Lightweight Cryptography: Algorithms such as Elliptic Curve Cryptography

(ECC) and Lightweight Encryption Algorithms (LEAs) are designed to work with
the limited resources of sensor nodes. ECC, in particular, is favored for key exchange
and digital signatures due to its ability to provide high security with small key sizes.

 Trust-Based Security Models: Trust-based models assess the reliability of nodes

based on their past behaviour, allowing for the detection of malicious nodes and the
prevention of attacks like Sybil and blackhole attacks. These models are particularly
useful in dynamic environments where nodes frequently join and leave the network.

 Data Aggregation: Instead of sending individual sensor data to a base station, nodes
aggregate data locally to reduce the communication overhead and energy
consumption. This also improves data privacy by ensuring that raw data is not
transmitted over the network.

1.3 Advantages of Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs)

1. Low Power Consumption:

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) are designed for efficient energy consumption, which is
critical in environments where nodes are battery-powered. Various protocols and
optimization techniques ensure that energy is conserved during data transmission and
processing.

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2. Cost-Effective:
WSNs are relatively inexpensive to deploy, especially with advances in sensor technology.
The components used in WSNs are small, low-cost, and easily available, making the
deployment of large-scale networks affordable for various applications.

3. Scalability:
WSNs can be easily scaled to accommodate a large number of sensor nodes. The network can
be expanded by adding more nodes, making it flexible to adjust to varying monitoring needs,
from small areas to vast regions.

4. Real-Time Monitoring and Data Collection:

WSNs enable continuous real-time data collection and monitoring, providing timely
information for decision-making. This is particularly useful for applications like
environmental monitoring, healthcare, and industrial automation.

5. Self-Organizing and Adaptive:

WSNs are self-organizing, meaning that the nodes can automatically set up their
communication network without requiring human intervention. This adaptability allows them
to adjust to environmental changes and network conditions.

6. Distributed Data Processing:

In WSNs, data processing is often done locally at the node level before transmitting to the
central system. This reduces the load on the network, improves efficiency, and minimizes
delays.

7. Versatility and Flexibility:

WSNs can be deployed in a variety of environments (e.g., land, underwater, underground,
and even on the human body) and can monitor different types of physical parameters such as
temperature, pressure, humidity, light, and motion.

8. High Reliability:
Due to their distributed nature, WSNs can offer high reliability in data collection and
transmission. The network is resilient to node failures and communication disruptions, as data
can be routed through multiple paths.

9. Enhanced Security:
While WSNs face security challenges, implementing lightweight cryptographic protocols and
trust-based systems can secure data transmission, authentication, and access control in these

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networks.
10. Environmental Monitoring:
WSNs are ideal for remote and harsh environments, such as forest monitoring, natural
disaster detection, and climate change research, where human intervention is minimal or
impossible.

1.4 List of Routing Protocols in WSNs

The design and operation of routing protocols in Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) are
crucial for ensuring efficient data transmission, minimizing energy consumption, and
ensuring reliability and scalability. Various routing protocols are used in WSNs, each suited
for specific applications and requirements. Below is a list of commonly used routing
protocols in WSNs:

1. Proactive Routing Protocols

These protocols maintain up-to-date routing information at all times, allowing nodes to
quickly route packets when needed.

 Destination Sequenced Distance Vector (DSDV):

DSDV is a table-driven routing protocol in which each node maintains a routing table
with routes to all other nodes. The routing table is updated periodically and whenever
there is a change in the topology.

 Optimized Link State Routing (OLSR):

OLSR is an optimized version of the link-state routing protocol. It uses a proactive
approach to maintain route information, with the optimization ensuring that fewer
nodes broadcast the routing information.

2. Reactive Routing Protocols

These protocols determine the path only when it is needed, reducing the overhead of
maintaining routing tables. However, this can introduce latency as paths need to be
discovered when needed.

 Ad-hoc On-demand Distance Vector (AODV):

AODV is a widely used reactive routing protocol that discovers routes only when
needed and maintains these routes until they are no longer required. It uses a route
discovery process and route maintenance to ensure data can be transmitted reliably.

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  Dynamic Source Routing (DSR):
DSR is a reactive protocol where each node maintains a route cache, and a route is
only discovered when it is needed. The protocol allows for source routing, where the
sender specifies the entire route.

 Temporally-Ordered Routing Algorithm (TORA):

TORA is a highly adaptive, on-demand protocol designed to be efficient and scalable.
It uses a "link reversal" mechanism for route maintenance and discovery.

3. Hybrid Routing Protocols

These protocols combine the features of both proactive and reactive routing protocols to
balance the strengths and weaknesses of each.

 Hybrid Energy-Efficient Distributed Routing (HEED):

HEED is a hybrid protocol designed to improve energy efficiency in WSNs by
combining clustering with energy-efficient routing.

 Zone Routing Protocol (ZRP):

ZRP is a hybrid routing protocol that divides the network into zones, using a proactive
approach within each zone and a reactive approach between zones.

4. Hierarchical Routing Protocols

These protocols use a hierarchy of nodes to reduce the overhead in large networks by
assigning roles such as cluster heads and regular nodes.

 Low Energy Adaptive Clustering Hierarchy (LEACH):

LEACH is a hierarchical routing protocol that uses clustering to reduce energy
consumption. It selects cluster heads dynamically and aggregates data within clusters
to improve efficiency.

 Threshold Sensitive Energy Efficient Protocol (TEEN):

TEEN is a hierarchical protocol designed for time-critical applications. It reduces the
number of transmissions by setting thresholds for event detection.

5. Data-Centric Routing Protocols

These protocols focus on the data being transmitted rather than the nodes or routes, making
them particularly useful in applications that require the delivery of specific types of data.

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  Directed Diffusion:
Directed Diffusion is a data-centric routing protocol where the network is driven by
the data, and nodes only forward data that is of interest to the querying nodes.

 Rumor Routing:
Rumor Routing is another data-centric protocol where the network only forwards data
that matches the interests of the receiving nodes, thus reducing the communication
overhead.

6. Location-Based Routing Protocols

These protocols use the location of nodes for efficient routing and are useful in applications
like tracking and monitoring.

 Geographic Routing (GRE):

GRE is a location-based protocol where packets are routed based on the geographical
location of the destination node. It uses the geographic position of nodes to determine
the best next hop for data transmission.

 Geographic and Energy-Aware Routing (GEAR):

GEAR is a location-based routing protocol that not only uses geographic information
but also incorporates energy constraints to make efficient routing decisions.

7. Multipath Routing Protocols

These protocols use multiple paths for routing to improve reliability, load balancing, and fault
tolerance.

 Multipath Routing Protocol (MRP):

MRP uses multiple paths between nodes to transmit data, thus improving reliability
and redundancy by spreading the traffic across different routes.

 Multipath AODV (MAODV):

MAODV is an extension of the AODV protocol that supports multiple paths for data
transmission to improve the robustness of the network and reduce congestion.

8. QoS-Aware Routing Protocols

These protocols focus on ensuring that Quality of Service (QoS) requirements, such as delay,
jitter, and bandwidth, are met.

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  QoS-Aware Routing (QOSR):
This protocol aims to satisfy the QoS requirements of data transmission in WSNs by
selecting routes that meet the necessary criteria for bandwidth, delay, and packet loss.

 Energy-Efficient QoS (EEQoS):

EEQoS combines energy-efficient routing with QoS metrics to ensure that the
network can meet service demands while minimizing energy consumption.

1.5 Summary

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) have emerged as a transformative technology with wide-
ranging applications across fields like environmental monitoring, healthcare, and military
surveillance. WSNs consist of small, low-cost, and low-power sensor nodes that collect and
transmit data wirelessly. Despite their advantages, such as scalability, low power
consumption, and real-time monitoring, WSNs face significant security challenges, including
data integrity, unauthorized access, and Denial-of-Service (DoS) attacks. Lightweight
cryptographic solutions like ECC and energy-efficient routing protocols are essential to
address these challenges. Various routing protocols, including proactive, reactive, hybrid, and
hierarchical, cater to different network requirements. By focusing on energy efficiency and
security, WSNs can be deployed in resource-constrained environments, improving
performance while ensuring data confidentiality, integrity, and availability. Advances in
trust-based models, data aggregation, and lightweight cryptography offer promising solutions
for enhancing the security and reliability of WSNs.

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 CHAPTER- 2

LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1 Introduction

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) and Internet of Things (IoT) technologies are at the
forefront of modern communication systems, providing solutions for a wide range of
applications including environmental monitoring, healthcare, smart cities, and industrial
automation. As these networks continue to evolve, ensuring their security becomes
increasingly important. This is due to their open, distributed nature, which makes them
vulnerable to various cyber threats such as unauthorized access, data manipulation, and
denial-of-service attacks. Securing these networks while maintaining energy efficiency,
scalability, and performance is a significant challenge, especially with the resource-
constrained nature of many devices within these systems.

To address these challenges, various security protocols and cryptographic techniques have
been proposed. These include hybrid algorithms, encryption schemes such as ECC (Elliptic
Curve Cryptography), AES (Advanced Encryption Standard), and blockchain-based key
management systems. While these methods offer improvements in security, they also come
with their own set of limitations, such as increased computational overhead, energy
consumption, and scalability challenges.

This overview highlights several key papers that explore different security models for WSNs
and IoT, focusing on their strengths and limitations. These studies provide insights into the
performance of various cryptographic algorithms, security protocols, and the potential
solutions for enhancing the overall security and efficiency of these networks. Despite the
advancements, challenges remain in optimizing security while ensuring minimal impact on
the performance and resource usage of the network. Future research must continue to address
these issues to enable secure, scalable, and efficient wireless communication systems for
diverse applications.

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2.2 Literature Review

[1] Hybrid Algorithm to Enhance Wireless Sensor Networks Security on the IOT.

Ntebatseng mahlake, topside e. Mathonsi, tonderrai muchenje, deon du plessis

Summary: This paper has presented that a hybrid algorithm that combines multiple security
protocols and dynamic trust evalution, but faces challenges like computational overhead and
scalability. And also optimization of performance and security.

[2] A Secure and Efficient ECC based scheme for Edge computing and Internet of Things.

Hisham Almajed, and Ahmad ALMogren, MDPI, 2022

Summary: This paper introduces an ECC based secure communication scheme for edge
computing and IOT, emphasizing reduced overhead but suffers from implementation
complexity, key generation and hardware requirement.

[3] Dynamic AES Encryption and Blockchain key management: A Novel solution for cloud
Data security.

Mauro Tropea, Mattia Giovanni Spina, Floriano De Rango and Antonio Francesco gentile

Summary: This paper proposed a dynamic AES encryption and blockchai key management
solution for cloud data security, through it face high computational complexity. And also
proposed solution offers a resilient and scalable security framework, aligning a robust
response to security chalenges, ensuring data confidentiality and integrity in cloud
environment to need the diverse of both users and service providers.

[4] Security in Wireless sensors Networks: A cryptography performance Analysis at MAC

layer.

Mauro Tropea, Mattia Giovanni Spina, Floriano De Rango and Antonio, Froncesco Gentile

Summary: This fourth paper analyzes the cryptography performance in WSNs at the MAC
layer, Focusing on optimization but highlighting computational overhead. In this work
security issues of two MAC protocol so impact of network performance. And Increased
energy consumption.

[5] Analysis of ECC for application specific WSN security.

Bill Nair, C. Mal

13
Summary: This fifth paper explore ECC for application specific WSN security, offering
efficient communication but with latency and hardware dependency. And robust encryption
with low computational overhead.

[6] On the Security Aspects of Internet of Things: A systematic Literature

Evandro L.C. Macedo, Egberto A.R. de Oliveira, Fabio H. Silva, Rui R, Mello Jr Felipo M.G.

Summary: The sixth paper provides a literature review on IOT security, identifying key
Vulnerabilities and challenges. It is Rapidly evolving technologies focus on existing
Literature, limited practical solution.

[7] Analysis of the cryptographic Algorithm in IOT communication

Catarina, Silva, Vitor A. Cunha, Joao p. Barraca, Rui L. Aguiar

Summary: This paper analyzes cryptographic algorithms for IOT, emphasizing the need to
lightweight solutions, but facing scalability issues. Together these papers highlight the
tradeoffs between security, performance and resource constraints in security WSNs and IOT
networks.

2.3 Research Motivation

From the above study literature review we can say that in the modern wireless
communication networks, particularly those involving wireless sensor networks, mobile ad
hoc networks, and the internet of things, secure and reliable routing is critical challenge.
These networks characterized by their decentralized nature, high mobility of nodes, and
resource constraints, such as limited power, computational capacity and bandwidth. As these
networks play an important role in application ranging from smart cities to military and
healthcare system, ensuring data integrity, confidently, and availability during the
communication is paramount. Traditional routing protocol, such as proactive, reactive, and
hybrid method, typically focus on optimize route discovery and maintenance based on
metrics like hope count, delay, and energy consumption. While these protocol design to
improve network performance.

14
 CHAPTER-3
METHODS AND TECHNIQUE
3.1 MANET (Mobile Ad Hoc Network):

A MANET is a type of wireless network that is formed by a collection of mobile devices or

nodes which communicate with each other without the need for a centralized infrastructure
like a base station or router. These networks are highly dynamic since the nodes (devices) can
join, leave, or move within the network at any time. They are self-organizing, meaning that
the nodes must autonomously determine the best way to route data to its destination.

The key characteristics of MANETs include:

 Decentralization: No central control or fixed infrastructure.

 Self-configuration: Nodes dynamically establish routes as needed.
 Mobility: Nodes move, which changes network topology frequently.

3.2 ECC (Error Control Coding):

Error Control Coding is a technique used in communication systems to detect and correct
errors that may occur during data transmission. The primary goal is to ensure that the data
received by the receiver is the same as the data sent by the transmitter, even in the presence
of noise or interference.

ECC involves adding redundancy to the transmitted data through various coding schemes,
which may include:

 Hamming Codes
 Turbo Codes
 Reed-Solomon Codes
 Low-Density Parity-Check (LDPC) Codes

In the context of MANETs, ECC is crucial because:

15
 1. Wireless channels are prone to errors due to interference, fading, and noise, which
can significantly affect communication reliability.
2. Mobile nodes in MANETs frequently move, changing the network topology, which
can impact the stability of communication channels.
3. Error correction techniques can help mitigate packet loss or data corruption caused
by these dynamic conditions, improving the reliability and performance of the
network.

MANET and ECC:

In the context of MANET, Error Control Coding plays an essential role in improving the
network’s reliability, particularly when dealing with unreliable wireless channels. Due to the
lack of fixed infrastructure and the mobile nature of the devices, the error rate in the
network can be high. By employing ECC, the network can recover from errors more
efficiently, ensuring reliable communication between nodes.

3.2.1 Why ECC?

Error Control Coding (ECC) is crucial in communication systems, particularly in wireless

networks like MANETs (Mobile Ad Hoc Networks), due to several key reasons:

1. Error-Prone Wireless Channels:

Wireless communication channels are inherently noisy, and data transmission over them is
highly susceptible to errors caused by factors like:

 Interference: From other wireless devices or signals.

 Fading: Variations in signal strength due to environmental conditions like weather,
terrain, or obstacles.
 Multipath Propagation: Signals reaching the receiver via multiple paths, leading to
phase shifts and signal distortion.

In such environments, it’s common for transmitted data to be corrupted or lost. ECC helps
detect and correct these errors, ensuring that the information received matches what was
originally sent.

2. Dynamic Network Topology in MANETs:

16
In MANETs, the network topology is highly dynamic since nodes (devices) are mobile.
Nodes frequently join, leave, or move within the network. As a result, the routing paths
between nodes can change rapidly, which increases the likelihood of data packet loss, delays,
or errors.

Since the communication in MANETs is decentralized, and routes can be unpredictable,

ECC ensures that even if a node transmits data via an unstable or unreliable route, the
receiver can still recover the correct data. This is especially important when nodes are using
multi-hop communication, where data is forwarded through intermediate nodes before
reaching the destination.

3. Reliable Communication:

In MANETs, the lack of a central infrastructure means that each node is responsible for
forwarding its own data and the data of other nodes. If errors occur during this process (due
to noise or interference), data integrity may be compromised. ECC ensures reliable
communication, even in such error-prone conditions, by adding redundancy to the transmitted
data. This redundancy allows the receiver to detect and, in many cases, correct errors without
requiring retransmissions.

4. Resource Efficiency:

Retransmissions due to data loss or errors can significantly consume valuable resources in
terms of bandwidth and energy, which are critical in MANETs. Since many nodes in a
MANET are battery-powered, frequent retransmissions can drain power quickly. ECC
reduces the need for retransmissions by allowing the receiver to recover lost or corrupted data
using the redundant bits in the transmitted message. This is particularly important in battery-
constrained environments.

5. Reducing Latency:

In MANETs, high latencies can occur if data must be retransmitted due to errors or
corruption. ECC helps reduce this latency by enabling error correction at the receiver side,
thereby minimizing the need for retransmissions and improving the overall throughput of the
network.

6. Improved Quality of Service (QoS):

17
Ensuring that data is transmitted reliably and without corruption is essential for maintaining
Quality of Service (QoS) in wireless networks. ECC enables better performance metrics
such as:

 Packet delivery ratio

 Throughput
 End-to-end delay
 Network lifetime (in terms of battery usage)

7. Security in MANETs:

Wireless networks, including MANETs, are vulnerable to a variety of attacks like

eavesdropping, spoofing, and man-in-the-middle attacks. While ECC primarily focuses on
ensuring data integrity and reliable transmission, it can also play a role in enhancing security.
For example, the ability to detect tampered data (through error detection) can help identify
malicious activity, such as data manipulation by attackers.

3.2.2 Types of ECC in MANETs:

 Block codes like Hamming code and Reed-Solomon code: Used for correcting
errors in data blocks.
 Convolutional codes: Typically used in continuous data streams, providing good
error correction in noisy environments.
 Turbo codes and LDPC codes: Modern ECC techniques that offer near-optimal
performance in terms of error correction.

3.2.3 Advantages of Error Control Coding (ECC):

1. Error Detection and Correction: The primary advantage of ECC is its ability to
detect and correct errors that occur during data transmission. In wireless
communication systems like MANETs, where signals are prone to interference,
fading, and noise, ECC ensures that the data received is accurate and matches the
transmitted data, even if there were errors during transmission.
2. Improved Reliability: ECC enhances the reliability of communication by ensuring
that even when some bits of data are corrupted, the receiver can still reconstruct the
original message. This is critical in environments like MANETs, where nodes may

18
 move and connectivity can be unstable. Reliable communication improves the
network's overall functionality, as nodes can continue to communicate effectively
despite potential disturbances.
3. Reduced Need for Retransmissions: One significant advantage of ECC is that it
reduces the need for retransmissions due to errors or data loss. In a MANET, frequent
retransmissions can lead to increased energy consumption and network congestion.
By allowing receivers to correct errors on their own, ECC minimizes retransmission
requirements, improving both energy efficiency and network throughput.
4. Enhanced Energy Efficiency: MANETs typically rely on battery-powered nodes,
and energy conservation is crucial. Retransmitting data consumes more energy, which
can deplete a node’s battery quickly. With ECC, error correction is performed on the
receiver side, reducing the need for retransmissions, thus saving valuable energy
resources and extending the network's lifetime.
5. Robustness to Interference: Wireless communication systems are highly susceptible
to interference, including multi-path fading and signal attenuation. ECC helps
mitigate these issues by adding redundancy to the transmitted data, allowing the
receiver to reconstruct the original message even in the presence of noise or weak
signals, improving the overall resilience of the network.
6. Lower Latency: Since ECC reduces the need for retransmissions, the overall latency
of the system is decreased. This is especially important in real-time communication or
applications that require low-latency, such as voice or video calls, where delays can
significantly affect the quality of service.
7. Better Quality of Service (QoS): By minimizing transmission errors and improving
reliability, ECC contributes to better Quality of Service (QoS). Key performance
indicators like packet delivery ratio, throughput, and end-to-end delay are
improved, ensuring a more stable and efficient network. This is especially important
in MANETs, where network conditions are constantly changing due to node mobility.
8. Adaptability to Network Conditions: ECC is highly adaptable and can be tailored to
various network conditions. For instance, dynamic error-correcting codes can be
employed in response to changes in network topology, such as node movement in
MANETs. This adaptability ensures that the network can continue to function
effectively, even when the network environment changes.
9. Security Enhancements:ECC can also contribute to network security by detecting
data tampering. If errors are detected in a packet, it can indicate that the data has been

19
 altered maliciously. This helps identify potential security threats such as man-in-the-
middle attacks or data manipulation, enabling the network to take corrective
actions.
10. Scalability in Large Networks: In large-scale networks, such as those in MANETs,
where multiple nodes are involved in routing data, ECC ensures that the network can
handle larger amounts of data efficiently. By reducing retransmissions and optimizing
data transfer, ECC allows the network to scale effectively while maintaining high
performance.
11. Improved Throughput: With error correction at the receiver end, the network
doesn’t need to wait for retransmissions or deal with repeated attempts to transmit lost
data. This increases throughput, allowing the network to carry more data in the same
amount of time, enhancing overall system performance.
12. Cost Efficiency: By reducing retransmissions and improving overall efficiency, ECC
helps reduce network congestion, which in turn can lower the operational costs of
maintaining the network. For networks like MANETs, where infrastructure may be
minimal, these cost savings are especially beneficial.

3.3 Trust Mechanisms in MANETs (Mobile Ad Hoc Networks)

Trust Mechanisms in MANETs (Mobile Ad Hoc Networks)are used to enhance the reliability
and security of communication by ensuring that data is transmitted through trustworthy
nodes. Since MANETs are highly dynamic and lack central authority or infrastructure,
traditional security methods, like encryption and authentication, may not be sufficient to deal
with malicious behaviors such as node compromise, packet dropping, and other attacks.
Trust-based mechanisms address these challenges by evaluating and assigning trust scores
to nodes based on their behavior and interactions in the network. Here's an overview of trust
mechanisms in MANETs:

1. Trust Evaluation:

Trust mechanisms in MANETs typically involve evaluating the behavior of nodes based on:

 Direct Observations: Nodes monitor their immediate neighbors' behavior (e.g.,

packet forwarding, data integrity) and assign trust scores accordingly.

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  Indirect Observations: Nodes may also collect feedback from other nodes about the
performance of certain nodes, using reputation-based systems. This helps to evaluate
nodes that may not be directly observed but are still part of the network.

2. Trust Models:

There are several models used to implement trust mechanisms in MANETs:

 Reputation-based Models: These models track the history of node interactions and
reputation. Nodes with good past behavior are trusted more, while nodes with
suspicious behavior have lower trust scores.
 Behavioral Models: These assess the actions of nodes, such as packet forwarding,
response times, and packet dropping, to determine trustworthiness.
 Probabilistic Models: These use mathematical approaches (like Bayesian networks)
to compute trust based on probabilistic reasoning and node interaction history.
 Combination Models: Some trust models combine both direct and indirect
evaluations to enhance reliability. For example, trust can be based on a node’s own
performance and feedback from others.

3. Key Functions of Trust Mechanisms in MANETs:

 Secure Routing: Trust mechanisms help ensure that data is routed through reliable
and trustworthy nodes, avoiding malicious or compromised nodes that might alter,
drop, or misroute data.
 Detection of Malicious Nodes: By continuously monitoring and evaluating node
behavior, trust mechanisms can detect compromised or malicious nodes (e.g., nodes
participating in Sybil attacks, blackhole attacks, or wormhole attacks) and isolate
them from the network.
 Mitigation of Attacks: Trust-based systems can identify and react to network attacks
by adjusting the trust levels of suspicious nodes, rerouting traffic, or initiating
defensive actions.

21
4. Advantages of Trust Mechanisms in MANETs:

 Resilience to Attacks: Trust mechanisms enhance network resilience by identifying

and excluding malicious nodes, which helps protect the integrity and performance of
the network.
 Dynamic Adaptability: Trust-based systems are flexible and adapt to changing
network conditions. For example, if a node starts behaving maliciously, its trust score
will drop, and the network will reroute traffic through more trustworthy paths.
 Improved Reliability: By ensuring that data is transmitted through trustworthy
nodes, trust mechanisms help improve the reliability and stability of data transmission
in MANETs, which is crucial given the dynamic and decentralized nature of the
network.

5. Challenges in Implementing Trust Mechanisms:

 Trust Estimation Accuracy: Trust is often subjective, and incorrect trust evaluations
can lead to unfair exclusion or misrouting of data. Ensuring accurate and fair trust
estimation is a significant challenge.
 Cooperative Behaviors: Some nodes might fake cooperative behavior to deceive the
trust mechanism, so designing trust systems that detect such manipulation is complex.
 Resource Overhead: Continuously monitoring node behaviors and calculating trust
scores requires computational resources and bandwidth, which may be limited in
resource-constrained MANETs.
 Dynamic Topology: The constantly changing topology in MANETs makes it harder
to maintain accurate trust scores, especially in networks with high mobility.

6. Examples of Trust-based Routing Protocols:

 Trusted Routing Protocol (TRP): A routing protocol that uses trust-based evaluation
to select reliable paths for data transmission.
 Trust-based AODV (T-AODV): A modified version of the AODV (Ad hoc On-
Demand Distance Vector) routing protocol that incorporates trust information to
select routes based on the trustworthiness of nodes.
 Secure AODV (SAODV): This version of AODV uses both encryption and trust-
based mechanisms to provide security and reliability in the routing process.

22
  TARP (Trust Aware Routing Protocol): It incorporates trust information into the
routing decisions, adjusting the paths based on the trustworthiness of the nodes
involved.

In the context of Error Control Coding (ECC), the key mathematical concepts and terms
include:

1. Codeword:
A codewordc\mathbf{c}c is a vector that represents the encoded version of the
message, which includes both the original message bits and error-correcting
redundancy. Mathematically, a codeword is an element of the code space, which is a
subspace of a vector space.
2. Generator Matrix (G):

The generator matrixG\mathbf{G}G is used to encode the message vector

m\mathbf{m}m into a codeword c\mathbf{c}c. For a linear code, the codeword is
obtained by multiplying the message vector m\mathbf{m}m with the generator
matrix:

c=m⋅G\mathbf{c} = \mathbf{m} \cdot \mathbf{G}c=m⋅G

Where m\mathbf{m}m is a row vector of size 1×k1 \times k1×k (the number of
message bits) and G\mathbf{G}G is a matrix of size k×nk \times nk×n (the number of
codeword bits).

3. Parity Check Matrix (H):

The parity check matrixH\mathbf{H}H is used to detect errors in received

codewords. The product of the parity check matrix and the codeword c\mathbf{c}c
(or received vector) should be zero for the codeword to be valid:

H⋅cT=0\mathbf{H} \cdot \mathbf{c}^T = \mathbf {0}H⋅cT=0

If the result is non-zero, the codeword is considered erroneous.

4. Hamming Distance (d):

23
 The Hamming distanced(x,y) between two codewords x\mathbf{x}x and
y\mathbf{y}y is the number of bit positions in which they differ:

d(x,y)=∑i=1n(xi≠yi)d(\mathbf{x}, \mathbf{y}) = \sum_{i=1}^{n} (x_i

\neqy_i)d(x,y)=i=1∑n(xi =yi)

The minimum Hamming distancedmind_{\text{min}} dmin of a code is the

smallest Hamming distance between any two distinct codewords in the code. This
determines the error detection and correction capability of the code.

5. Syndrome:
The syndromes\mathbf{s}s is a vector used for error detection in a received
codeword r\mathbf{r}r. It is calculated by multiplying the received vector by the
parity check matrix:

s=H⋅rT\mathbf{s} = \mathbf{H} \cdot \mathbf{r}^Ts=H⋅rT

If s=0\mathbf{s} = \mathbf{0}s=0, the codeword is valid; otherwise, it indicates an

error.

6. Code Rate (R):

The code rateR is the ratio of the number of information bits k to the total number of
bits n in the codeword:

R=knR = \frac{k}{n}R=nk

This indicates the efficiency of the code in terms of the proportion of transmitted bits
that carry actual information.

7. Cyclic Codes:

A cyclic code is a type of linear code in which any cyclic shift of a codeword results
in another valid codeword. Mathematically, if c=[c1,c2,..., cn]\mathbf{c} = [c_1, c_2,
..., c_n]c=[c1,c2,...,cn] is a codeword, then any cyclic shift c′=[c2,...,cn,c1]\mathbf{c'}
= [c_2, ..., c_n, c_1]c′=[c2,...,cn,c1] is also a codeword.

24
 8. Reed-Solomon Code:

Reed-Solomon (RS) codes are a class of non-binary cyclic codes that can correct
multiple errors. They are defined over finite fields GF(q), where q is typically a power
of a prime. A Reed-Solomon code is usually denoted as (n,k)(n, k)(n,k), where:

o n is the length of the codeword.

o k is the number of message symbols.

The code can correct up to n−k2\frac{n-k}{2}2n−k errors. The encoding process uses
polynomial evaluation over finite fields.

9. Finite Fields (GF):

Finite fields, denoted as GF(q)GF(q)GF(q), are essential in error correction codes,

especially for Reed-Solomon codes. A finite field is a set of numbers where addition,
subtraction, multiplication, and division are defined and finite. For binary codes,
GF(2) is used, but for non-binary codes like Reed-Solomon, fields like GF(q) with q
as a power of a prime are used.

10. Error-Correcting Capability:

The error-correcting capability of a code is determined by its minimum Hamming

distance. A code with a minimum distance of dmind_{\text{min}} dmin can detect
up to dmin−1d_{\text{min}} - 1dmin−1 errors and correct up to ⌊dmin−12⌋\left\lfloor
\frac{d_{\text{min}} - 1}{2} \right\rfloor⌊2dmin−1⌋ errors.

Summary of Key Mathematical Terms:

 Codeword: Encoded data consisting of both information and parity bits.

 Generator MatrixG\mathbf{G}G: Matrix used to generate the codeword from the
message.
 Parity Check MatrixH\mathbf{H}H: Matrix used to detect errors.
 Hamming Distance: Number of differing bits between two codewords.
 Syndrome: Vector used to detect errors in the received codeword.
 Code Rate: Ratio of message bits to codeword bits.
 Cyclic Code: Code where cyclic shifts of codewords result in valid codewords.

25
  Reed-Solomon Code: Non-binary code used for error correction over finite fields.
 Finite FieldGF(q)GF(q)GF(q): Mathematical field with a finite number of elements
used in coding theory.

3.4 AES (Advanced Encryption Standard)

In the context of Mobile Ad hoc Networks (MANETs), AES (Advanced Encryption

Standard) is a symmetric encryption algorithm used to ensure data confidentiality, integrity,
and security in wireless communication. Due to the decentralized and dynamic nature of
MANETs, where nodes frequently join and leave the network, and because of the potential
security vulnerabilities such as eavesdropping, unauthorized access, and data tampering,
securing communication in MANETs is critical.

AES is a widely used symmetric encryption algorithm for securing data. It operates on fixed-
size blocks (128 bits) and supports key sizes of 128, 192, or 256 bits. AES involves several
rounds of transformations (SubBytes, ShiftRows, MixColumns, and AddRoundKey),
depending on the key length (e.g., 10 rounds for 128-bit keys, 12 for 192-bit, and 14 for 256-
bit).

3.4.1 Why AES in MANETs?

1. Data Security:

In a MANET, the data is typically transmitted over wireless channels, making it

vulnerable to interception. AES ensures that the data remains confidential by
encrypting it before transmission, which can only be decrypted by the intended
recipient using the shared key.

2. Efficiency:
AES is computationally efficient when implemented on modern hardware, and its
symmetric key approach (same key for both encryption and decryption) makes it
faster compared to asymmetric algorithms like RSA, which are also used in securing
communication but require more computational resources.
3. Integrity and Authentication:

26
 AES, when combined with techniques like Message Authentication Codes (MACs)
or hash functions, can ensure data integrity, allowing the recipient to verify that the
message has not been altered during transmission. This is crucial in MANETs, where
data integrity is often compromised due to malicious attacks.

3.4.2 AES in MANET Security Challenges:

While AES provides a high level of security, applying it in MANETs poses several
challenges:

1. Resource Constraints:

MANET nodes are often battery-powered and have limited processing and storage
capabilities. AES, while efficient, can still be resource-intensive, especially on lower-
end devices with less computational power.

2. Key Management:

The management of cryptographic keys in MANETs is a significant challenge due to

the mobility of nodes, which can result in frequent changes in network topology. Key
distribution and key exchange mechanisms need to be carefully designed to avoid
exposing the network to attacks such as eavesdropping or man-in-the-middle attacks.

3. Dynamic Topology:

The mobile nature of nodes in a MANET means that the network topology is
constantly changing, which can complicate secure communication. For example, a
node may need to frequently re-establish secure communication channels with other
nodes as it moves and the network topology evolves.

4. Attacks on AES:

Even though AES is secure, MANETs are vulnerable to various attacks such as:

o Eavesdropping: Malicious nodes could intercept messages if the encryption is

not properly implemented.

27
 o Denial of Service (DoS): Attackers could overwhelm nodes or networks with
excessive traffic, preventing the use of encryption services.
o Replay Attacks: Malicious nodes might record and resend encrypted
messages to confuse legitimate nodes or disrupt the network.

3.4.3 AES Implementation in MANETs:

To implement AES in MANETs, various strategies can be adopted:

1. Hybrid Encryption Schemes:

To optimize resource usage, a hybrid encryption scheme can be used. For example,
asymmetric encryption (such as RSA) is used to exchange a shared symmetric key,
and then AES is used for the actual data encryption/decryption.

2. Group-Based Key Management:

Instead of each pair of nodes using a separate AES key, group key management
protocols can be used. In this case, all nodes in a group share a common key for
communication, simplifying key management.

3. Secure Routing Protocols:

Secure routing protocols like AODV (Ad hoc On-demand Distance Vector) and
DSR (Dynamic Source Routing) can be modified to include AES encryption for
securing route requests, responses, and data forwarding.

4. AES with Authentication and Integrity:

To ensure the integrity and authenticity of the encrypted data, AES can be combined
with cryptographic hash functions or HMAC (Hash-based Message Authentication
Code) to protect against data manipulation and replay attacks.

3.4.4 Advantages of Using AES in MANETs:

1. Strong Security:

28
 AES is considered highly secure and efficient for protecting sensitive data in
MANETs. With key sizes of 128, 192, and 256 bits, it offers a high level of
encryption strength.

2. Performance Efficiency:

AES is faster than many other encryption algorithms, making it suitable for resource-
constrained environments like MANETs, provided it's implemented correctly.

3. Scalability:
AES can be efficiently scaled in a network of any size, which is essential as MANETs
can consist of many mobile nodes with varying roles and capabilities.
4. Mature Algorithm:

AES is widely used and thoroughly analyzed, meaning it has a proven security track
record and is supported by many cryptographic libraries, making it easier to
implement in MANETs.

3.5 RSA(Rivest-Shamir-Adleman)

In Mobile Ad hoc Networks (MANETs), security is a critical concern due to their

decentralized and dynamic nature. One of the cryptographic techniques used to ensure secure
communication in such networks is RSA (Rivest-Shamir-Adleman), an asymmetric
encryption algorithm that uses a pair of keys—public and private—for encryption and
decryption.

RSA is based on the mathematical properties of large prime numbers. It uses two keys:

1. Public Key: Used for encrypting data and verifying digital signatures.
2. Private Key: Used for decrypting data and creating digital signatures.

In RSA, the security relies on the difficulty of factoring large numbers, particularly the
product of two large primes, which is computationally hard to break.

29
3.5.1 Why RSA in MANETs?

1. Key Distribution:

RSA’s asymmetric nature solves the problem of key distribution, which is a major
challenge in MANETs where nodes frequently join or leave the network. In
traditional symmetric encryption (e.g., AES), both parties need to share a secret key,
which is difficult to manage in dynamic environments. RSA allows each node to
securely distribute its public key while keeping the private key confidential.

2. Authentication:
RSA enables digital signatures, allowing nodes to authenticate each other, ensuring
that data originates from a legitimate source and has not been tampered with. This is
critical in MANETs where malicious nodes might try to impersonate others or inject
false data.
3. Confidentiality:
RSA ensures that data remains confidential during transmission, as only the intended
recipient with the corresponding private key can decrypt the message.

3.5.2 Challenges of Using RSA in MANETs:

1. Computational Overhead:

RSA encryption and decryption are computationally intensive, especially for mobile
devices with limited processing power. As RSA involves large number operations
(key generation, encryption, and decryption), it might not be suitable for highly
resource-constrained nodes in MANETs.

2. Key Management:

Although RSA simplifies key distribution, the management of keys in dynamic

MANET environments can still be complex. The nodes need mechanisms to regularly
update and distribute public keys, and secure protocols for key exchange must be
implemented to protect against attacks like man-in-the-middle.

30
 3. Scalability:
As the number of nodes increases in a MANET, managing the cryptographic keys and
ensuring efficient communication between all nodes becomes a challenge.

3.5.3 Application of RSA in MANETs:

1. Secure Routing:

In routing protocols like AODV (Ad hoc On-demand Distance Vector) and DSR
(Dynamic Source Routing), RSA can be used for securely exchanging routing
information and authenticating the source of routing requests. This prevents malicious
nodes from injecting false routing information or participating in black hole and
wormhole attacks.

2. Hybrid Encryption:

Given RSA’s computational overhead, a hybrid encryption scheme can be used in

MANETs. In this scheme, RSA is used for key exchange (to securely share the
symmetric key), while symmetric encryption algorithms like AES are used for the
actual data encryption. This ensures both security and efficiency, leveraging RSA for
secure key distribution and AES for fast data encryption.

3. Secure Communication:

RSA can be used to encrypt messages or establish secure communication channels

between nodes in the network, ensuring that the transmitted data remains private and
can only be decrypted by the intended recipient.

3.6 Hybrid Approach: Combining ECC + AES + RSA

Combining ECC, AES, and RSA in a hybrid approach provides a balanced solution that
addresses both security and resource efficiency. Here's how these algorithms can work
together in a secure routing system:

1. Key Exchange: ECC can be used to perform the key exchange between the sender
and receiver. The smaller key size and high security make ECC ideal for securely
establishing a shared secret between nodes.

31
 2. Session Key Generation: Once the keys are exchanged using ECC, the session key
(shared secret) is used to encrypt and decrypt the data using AES. AES will handle
the encryption of the data due to its efficiency and low computational overhead.
3. Authentication and Integrity: RSA can be used for digital signatures to verify the
authenticity of the sender and to ensure that the data has not been altered during
transmission. This guarantees data integrity and authentication.
4. Security and Performance Balance:
o ECC provides efficient and secure key exchange and authentication with
smaller key sizes.
o AES handles the data encryption in a lightweight manner without
compromising performance.
o RSA adds an extra layer of security by allowing for the verification of
authenticity and integrity of data via digital signatures.

Advantages of the Hybrid Approach (ECC + AES + RSA):

1. Efficient Resource Utilization: The hybrid approach ensures efficient resource usage
by combining lightweight cryptographic operations (ECC and AES) for encryption
and key exchange, while still providing robust authentication through RSA.
2. Scalability: The system can scale easily, as ECC’s small key size makes it ideal for
IoT and WSNs with limited resources, while RSA adds a necessary layer of security
for authentication and integrity checking.
3. Adaptability: The approach is adaptable to different types of IoT applications where
both data security and efficiency are paramount. The use of AES ensures that bulk
data transmission remains fast and efficient, while RSA ensures that the network’s
routing decisions and node behavior remain secure.
4. Security Against Multiple Attacks: The combination of these algorithms provides
security against common attacks such as:
o Man-in-the-Middle (MITM): Secure key exchange via ECC prevents
interception and unauthorized access.
o Data Integrity and Replay Attacks: RSA ensures the authenticity and
integrity of the data.
o Resource Constraints: AES is efficient enough to be used in resource-
constrained devices while maintaining data confidentiality.

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 CHAPTER- 4

PROPOSED MODEL

In the context of modern wireless communication networks, particularly those involving

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs), Mobile Ad Hoc Networks (MANETs), and the Internet
of Things (IoT), secure and reliable routing remains a critical challenge. These networks are
characterized by their decentralized nature, high mobility of nodes, and resource constraints,
such as limited power, computational capacity, and bandwidth. As these networks play an
increasingly important role in applications ranging from smart cities to military and
healthcare systems, ensuring data integrity, confidentiality, and availability during
communication is paramount. Traditional routing protocols, such as proactive, reactive, and
hybrid methods, typically focus on optimizing route discovery and maintenance based on
metrics like hop count, delay, and energy consumption. While these protocols are designed to
improve network performance, they lack mechanisms to evaluate the trustworthiness of
participating nodes.

The primary objective of the hybrid approach for secure routing using a trust mechanism is to
enhance the security, reliability, and efficiency of data transmission in decentralized networks
such as Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs), Mobile Ad Hoc Networks (MANETs), and the
Internet of Things (IoT). This approach aims to address the vulnerabilities of traditional
routing protocols by integrating a trust-based evaluation system, ensuring that only reliable
and trustworthy nodes are involved in the routing process. To address these security
challenges, integrating a trust-based mechanism into the routing protocol offers a viable
solution. A trust mechanism allows nodes to evaluate the trustworthiness of their neighbors
based on their behavior in previous interactions. This evaluation can include metrics such as
packet delivery rates, cooperation in routing, and adherence to network protocols.

33
 Figure 2. ECC Flowchart

Steps

1. Node Initialization: Each node generates its private-public ECC key pair.

2. Key Generation (ECC): ECC is used to generate the cryptographic key pair
(private/public).

3. Public Key Exchange (ECDH): Nodes exchange public keys using Elliptic Curve
Diffie-Hellman (ECDH) to establish a shared secret.

4. Shared Secret Generation: Using ECDH, a shared secret is computed between the
communicating nodes.

34
5. Secure Data Transmission (Encrypted): The shared secret is used to encrypt the data
before transmission.

6. Decryption at Receiver: The receiver uses the shared secret to decrypt the received
data.

Figure 3. Trust Mechanism

35
 Steps

1. Node Initialization: The node starts and initializes its trust parameters.

2. Trust Evaluation of Neighbors: The node evaluates the trustworthiness of its

neighboring nodes based on prior interactions.

3. Trust Scoring Based on Behavior: Trust scores are assigned based on factors such as
successful packet forwarding and cooperation in the network.

4. Trust-Based Routing Decision: The node makes a routing decision based on the trust
scores of potential neighbors. Higher trust nodes are preferred.

5. Route Authentication: Routes are authenticated to ensure that the data is being
transmitted through a legitimate path.

6. Data Transmission: Once the route is authenticated, data is transmitted securely.

7. Route Failure Handling: If the route authentication fails, the system will reattempt the
route selection process.

36
 Figure 4. Proposed Model

Steps

1. Node Initialization:

• The node initializes its ECC parameters (key generation) and trust parameters
(neighbor evaluation).

2. Key Generation (ECC):

• Each node generates its private/public key pair using ECC for secure
communication.

37
3. Trust Evaluation of Neighbors:

• The node evaluates the trustworthiness of its neighboring nodes based on prior
interactions.

4. Public Key Exchange (ECDH):

• Nodes exchange public keys using Elliptic Curve Diffie-Hellman (ECDH)

to establish a shared secret.

5. Trust Scoring Based on Behavior:

• Nodes assign trust scores to neighboring nodes based on their past behavior
(e.g., packet forwarding reliability)

6. Shared Secret Generation:

• The shared secret is generated using the ECDH key exchange, enabling
encryption for secure communication.

7. Trust-Based Routing Decision:

• The node selects a routing path based on the trust scores of its neighbors,
favoring trusted nodes.

8. Route Authentication (ECDSA):

• Once a route is selected, it is authenticated using Elliptic Curve Digital

Signature Algorithm (ECDSA) to ensure route integrity.

• Authentication:

• ECC Authentication (ECDH + ECDSA) and Trust Authentication (trust

scoring) must match for the route to be considered.

9. Shared Secret Generation:

• The shared secret is generated using the ECDH key exchange, enabling
encryption for secure communication.

10. Trust-Based Routing Decision:

• The node selects a routing path based on the trust scores of its neighbors,
favoring trusted nodes.

38
 11. Route Authentication (ECDSA):

• Once a route is selected, it is authenticated using Elliptic Curve Digital

Signature Algorithm (ECDSA) to ensure route integrity.

• Authentication:

• ECC Authentication (ECDH + ECDSA) and Trust Authentication (trust

scoring) must match for the route to be considered.

Chapter Implementation

39
40
Figure 20 nodes without attack

41
Figure 20 nodes with attack

50 nodes

42
50 nodes attack

100 nodes

43
100 nodes attack

150 nodes

44
150 attacks

Pdr ratio

45
latency

Throughput

Packet loss ratio

46
With or without encryption

Network Parameter List:

Parameter Description Value/Example

The total number of nodes in the

Network Size (N) 20, 50, 100, 150
network

The number of nodes per unit Can vary depending on the area
Node Density
area (in nodes per square meter) size and the number of nodes

The movement pattern of nodes Static (no mobility), Random

Node Mobility
(important for dynamic networks) Movement, or Specific Patterns

The distance within which nodes

Node Communication
can communicate (range in 100 meters
Range
meters)

Routing Protocol Type of routing protocol used in AODV, DSR, OLSR, or any
Type the network custom routing protocol

Transmission Power Power used by nodes to send 20 dBm (can vary based on
(Tx Power) messages to other nodes simulation)

The size of data packets being Varies (e.g., 512 bytes, 1 KB, or
Data Packet Size
transmitted higher based on the application)

Table : Parameter

47
 CHAPTER- 5

TOOLS AND TECHNOLOGY

5.1 Software Tools and Matlab 2022

MATLAB (Matrix Laboratory) is a high-level programming language and environment used

for numerical computation, data analysis, algorithm development, and visualization. It is
widely utilized for its powerful tools in matrix manipulations, data processing, and
mathematical modeling. MATLAB provides an interactive platform for engineers and
scientists to perform complex mathematical operations, solve linear algebra problems,
simulate dynamic systems, and develop algorithms.

The hybrid approach for secure routing using a trust mechanism provides an effective
solution to the challenges of security and reliability in Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs)
and Internet of Things (IoT) environments. By integrating trust evaluation with traditional
routing protocols, it enhances security by prioritizing trusted nodes, mitigating attacks, and
ensuring secure data transmission.

• .This approach optimizes network performance by balancing security and resource

efficiency, making it suitable for dynamic and resource-constrained environments.
Future work could focus on refining trust evaluation techniques to further improve
scalability and adaptability in large-scale networks.

48
 CHAPTER- 6

CONCLUSION
The integration of trust-based mechanisms in Mobile Ad hoc Networks (MANETs)
significantly enhances the network's ability to address security challenges that are inherent to
its decentralized, dynamic, and resource-constrained environment. Traditional routing
protocols in MANETs often fail to mitigate threats such as malicious nodes, data tampering,
unauthorized access, and routing attacks like Sybil, wormhole, and blackhole. In contrast, our
proposed hybrid trust-based routing algorithm combines trust evaluation with conventional
protocols, providing an adaptive layer of security that continuously adjusts to the behavior of
nodes and changes in network topologies.

The hybrid approach improves network resilience by identifying trustworthy nodes, thus
ensuring that data follows reliable paths and minimizing the risk of routing attacks. The
dynamic nature of trust mechanisms, which evolves based on node behavior and interactions,
makes the approach particularly robust in constantly changing environments. Unlike
traditional systems, this method reduces the computational overhead of route discovery and
maintenance, as only trusted nodes are selected, which enhances energy efficiency and
network performance—critical factors in MANETs, where nodes have limited battery power
and computational resources.

Furthermore, the hybrid trust model optimizes resource usage by lowering the cost of key
distribution and trust management. The approach's scalability makes it suitable for larger
networks, and it avoids overwhelming individual nodes with excessive processing demands.
These improvements in security, efficiency, and adaptability demonstrate the significant
advantages of our proposed algorithm compared to traditional routing protocols in MANETs.

Despite challenges such as trust management overhead and potential vulnerabilities in trust
models, our algorithm offers a robust, scalable, and efficient solution for secure
communication in MANETs. By combining trust mechanisms with proven routing protocols,
this algorithm addresses the evolving threats in these networks while optimizing resource
usage. Furthermore, its integration with advanced cryptographic techniques like Elliptic
Curve Cryptography (ECC) ensures long-term security in the face of emerging threats like
quantum computing.

49
The future of MANETs will depend heavily on adaptive, trust-aware routing protocols that
can manage dynamic topologies, mitigate new types of attacks, and conserve network
resources. Our algorithm represents a crucial step forward in this direction, offering better
performance and higher security than traditional systems, particularly in environments that
demand low overhead and high adaptability. With ongoing research into the areas of energy-
efficient routing, resilient trust models, and real-world implementation, our approach is
poised to be a cornerstone of future MANETs, providing both secure and efficient
communication.

50
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