A trust-aware RPL routing protocol to detect blackhole and selective forwarding attacks

Abstract

This research addresses blackhole and selective forwarding routing attacks, whichare fundamental security attacks on the routing of data in IoT networks. Most IoT devices today,from medical devices to connected vehicles and even smart buildings, have the capability ofcommunicating wirelessly with one another. Although, consumers are progressively embracingthe concept of connected devices, recent studies indicate that security is not high on the prioritylist of manufacturers, especially in the way these IoT devices route and communicate dataamongst themselves. Thus, it leaves the door wide open to attacks and compromises. In thisstudy, a trust-based routing Protocol for Low-Power and Lossy Networks, addressing blackholeand selective forwarding attacks is proposed. We show that our proposed protocol is not onlysecure from blackhole and selective forwarding attacks, but also does not impose undueoverheads on network traffic.