Securing Layer-3 Wormhole Attacks in Ad-Hoc Networks

Abstract

In ad hoc networks, malicious nodes can carry wormhole attacks to fabricate a false scenario on neighbour relations among mobile nodes. The attacks threaten the safety of ad hoc routing protocols and some security enhancements. In the wormhole attack, an attacker records packets (or bits) at one location in the network, tunnels them (possibly selectively) to another location, and retransmits them there into the network. The wormhole attack can form a serious threat in wireless networks, especially against many ad hoc network routing protocols and location-based wireless security systems. In this paper, we present a new approach for detecting wormhole attacks. The Witness Integration Multipath protocol is based on the Multipath DSR routing protocol and finds suspicious behavior related to wormhole attacks.