A Secure Cluster Formation Scheme in Wireless Sensor Networks

Abstract

Inwirelesssensornetworks,clusteringexpeditesmanydesirablefunctionssuchasloadbalancing,energysavings,distributedkeymanagement,andsoon.Forsecureclustering,itisveryimportanttofindcompromisednodesandremovethemduringtheinitialclusterformationprocess.Ifsomenodesarecompromisedandsurvivethecensorshipprocess,theycanmakesomenodeshaveadifferentclusterviewandcansplitaclusterintomultipleclusterstodeteriorateclusterqualityasawhole.Toresolvetheseproblems,weproposearobustschemeagainstsuchattacksinthispaper.First,ourschemegenerateslargesizedclusterswhereanytwonodesareatmosttwohopsawayfromeachothertoraisethequalityofclusters.Second,ourschemeemploystheverificationoftwohopdistantnodestopreservethequalityofthelargesizedclustersandrefrainsfromsplittingtheclusters.Last,ourschemeprefersbroadcasttransmissionstosavetheenergyofnodes.Securityanalysisprovesthatourschemecanidentifycompromisednodesandpreservestheclustermembershipagreementagainstthecompromisednodes.Inaddition,simulationresultsprovethatourschemegeneratesfewerclustersandismoresecureandenergy-efficientthantheschemeproducingonlysmallsizedclusters.