Models of Authentications in Ad Hoc Networks and Their Related Network Properties

There is still no consistent definition of general ad hoc network properties. All introduced protocols for ad hoc networks are based on different assumptions and security requirements, and are consequently suited for specific applications only. Due to the broad field of applications, a general security model can still not be found in any literature. We define two ad hoc network categories, namely mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs) and smart sensor network, and discuss all further definitions and observations separately for both implementations. The main contribution of this report is the clear definition of properties, parameters, architectures, security requirements, and authentication models of ad hoc networks. Furthermore, we derive design goals for all protocols to be implemented in ad hoc networks. We also provide an extensive overview of present and future ad hoc network applications, used standards, and proposed solutions. We believe that the authentication of network nodes and the establishment of secret keys among nodes are both target security objectives in ad hoc networks. The constrained devices and other special properties of ad hoc networks make achieving those security properties a challenging task. We comprehensively discuss proposed protocols in each introduced authentication model, state their features and drawbacks, and identify their limitation of use. We show that providing entity authentication and authentic key exchange in ad hoc networks is a security problem still not satisfyingly solved. The next contribution of this paper is the introduction of a general protocol framework for the implementation of authentication and key establishment protocols in ad hoc networks. The combination of the derived design goals and the protocol framework enables us to examine existing ad hoc network protocols and to develop new authentication and key establishment protocols that are applicable in ad hoc networks while meeting the network’s security requirements at the same time.