Analysis and Modeling of Vampire Attacks in Self-organized Wireless Sensor Networks

The paper comprises research of information security issues concerning self-organizing wireless sensor networks (WSNs). The object of the study is vampire attacks, inherent in WSNs and aimed at depleting the energy resources of nodes operating from limited autonomous power sources. This attack is based on the attacker's exploitation of one or more compromised nodes which the attacker has access to. The attack involves disrupting routing processes in a self-organizing WSN by maliciously changing the actual routes of some data packets. Thus, the intruder forces the nodes to consume significantly more energy resources. This, in turn, leads to a much faster discharge of the batteries, and as a result the network stops to function fully, and the application services it provides are unavailable to the end users. In particular, such consequences become especially critical in case of networks operating within important infrastructure facilities, continuous cycle industries, and transport. The paper proposes a simulation model of vampire attacks, based on rules and suitable for implementing a wide range of WSNs. The simulation model of a self-organizing wireless sensor network with Digi XBee series 2 nodes is evaluated. Based on the modeling results, the main conclusions are formulated.