Providing Mobile Users' Anonymity in Hybrid Networks

We present a novel hybrid communication protocol that guarantees mobile users' k-anonymity against a wide-range of adversaries by exploiting the capability of handheld devices to connect to both WiFi and cellular networks. Unlike existing anonymity schemes, we consider all parties that can intercept communications between the mobile user and a server as potential privacy threats. We formally quantify the privacy exposure and the protection of our system in the presence of malicious neighboring peers, global WiFi eavesdroppers, and omniscient mobile network operators. We show how our system provides an automatic incentive for users to collaborate, since by forwarding packets for other peers users gain anonymity for their own traffic.

• Type: Conference
• Year: 2010
• Where: ESORICS
• Authors: Claudio Agostino Ardagna, Sushil Jajodia, Pierangela Samarati, Angelos Stavrou
• Keywords: ESORICS 2010, Malicious Neighboring Peers, Mobile User, Security Privacy, Users Gain Anonymity