Intrusion Detection of Sinkhole Attacks in Wireless Sensor Networks

Abstract. In this paper, we present an Intrusion Detection System designed for wireless sensor networks and show how it can be configured to detect Sinkhole attacks. A Sinkhole attack forms a serious threat to sensor networks. We study in depth this attack by presenting how it can be launched in realistic networks that use the MintRoute protocol of TinyOS. MintRoute is the most widely used routing protocol in sensor network deployments, using the link quality metric to build the corresponding routing tree. Having implemented this attack in TinyOS, we embed the appropriate rules in our IDS system that will enable it to detect successfully the intruder node. We demonstrate this in our own sensor network deployment and we also present simulation results to confirm the effectiveness and accuracy of the algorithm in the general case of random topologies. Key words: Security, Intrusion Detection, Sinkhole Attack, Sensor Networks

• Type: Conference
• Year: 2007
• Where: ALGOSENSORS
• Authors: Ioannis Krontiris, Tassos Dimitriou, Thanassis Giannetsos, Marios Mpasoukos
• Keywords: ALGOSENSORS 2007, Sensor Network Deployment, Sensor Networks, Sinkhole Attack