Best-effort authentication for opportunistic networks

Abstract

Abstract-Prior work has shown that uncontrolled messaging in ad-hoc opportunistic networks results in a disproportionate sharing of network capacity. Solutions based on publicly verifiable sender authentication mechanisms, such as those in [1], require complete message transmission for proper verification. However, introducing message fragmentation, e.g., to optimize limited transmission opportunities, could negatively impact resource management. Unverifiable message fragments that are assigned lower priorities are discarded sooner and reduce delivery ratios. This paper investigates the extent of this impact and shows that publicly verifiable fragment authentication mechanisms are needed to retain the benefits of fragmentation as well as resource management.We take this a step further and show through simulations that strong authenticity guarantees for intermediaries are unnecessary in our specific scenario. Best-effort authentication schemes, where the probability of false positives is much higher than in typical authentication schemes, are sufficient. This suggests the existence of other scenarios where this approach is also applicable. We describe various best-effort authentication techniques and analyze their computation and space savings.

Securing and Facilitating Communication Within Opportunistic Networks: A Holistic Survey

“…J. Solis et al [70] suggested using "best-effort" authentication, a method that accepts false positives but not false negatives, easier to break than the Merkle hash tree-based techniques, requiring fewer computations for benign nodes' fragment authentication by intermediaries in Opportunistic Networks. The study suggested that "best-effort" authentication is only for fragment authentication and should not replace traditional end-to-end message authentication.…”

Node Authentication Using NTRU Algorithm in Opportunistic Network

“…OppNets are used to communicate between the nodes which may be mobiles or other devices having Wi-Fi or Bluetooth using personal laptops, cameras, sensors. OppNets may connect to other heterogeneous networks among the cellular base station, sensor networks, IoT devices, and other networks which connected through WI-FI [1,2,3,4]. In this network the nodes act to each other as a router that causes Opportunistic networks to be more adaptable than Delay Tolerant Network (DTN) as shown in Fig.…”