An Improved ECC‐Based Authenticated Key Exchange Protocol for Industrial IoT Environments

The Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) represents a transformative force in modern industries, enabling unparalleled levels of automation, efficiency, and data‐driven decision‐making. However, the pervasive connectivity and heterogeneity of IIoT devices introduce significant security challenges, with authentication and access control emerging as critical concerns. This paper proposes a comprehensive authentication scheme specifically tailored for IIoT environments, encompassing system initialization, device registration, mutual authentication, and dynamic device addition phases. At the heart of this scheme lies an innovative approach to key exchange, leveraging an improved elliptic curve cryptography (ECC) model enhanced by a novel self‐improved white shark optimization (SI‐WSO) algorithm. This inspiration from the acute sensory capabilities of great white sharks, the SIWSO algorithm optimizes key generation efficiency, strengthening the security and reliability of IIoT authentication processes. Through a seamless integration of cryptographic principles and nature‐inspired optimization techniques, the proposed scheme aims to fortify IIoT infrastructures, mitigating security threats and fostering trust in industrial deployments. This paper presents a rigorous exploration of the proposed authentication scheme, highlighting its efficacy in enhancing IIoT security and resilience. As IIoT continues to evolve, robust authentication mechanisms play a pivotal role in safeguarding critical assets and sustaining the momentum of digital transformation in industrial settings.