Wireless sensor network architecture and its security challenges

Project (M.S., Computer Engineering) -- California State University, Sacramento, 2010.Wireless Sensor Devices are becoming a more attractive choice as a sensor platform compared to hardwired sensor devices because of the ease of installation and freedom in sensor placement. Wireless Sensor Devices are usually installed in mass quantity to form a Wireless Sensor Network to sense environmental changes, to track movement in battlefield or military zones, and to monitor any desired function in the industrial or commercial setting. \ud This project is an effort to learn about the security requirements of a Wireless Sensor Network by analyzing the security mechanisms that have been developed through the TinyOS project. However, certain basic knowledge must be obtained first in order to fully understand the security requirements of a Wireless Sensor Network. Thus, the project starts with an overview of the Wireless Sensor Devices hardware architecture. Then, the project describes the Wireless Sensor Devices network stack and its security mechanisms. The Wireless Sensor Network security requirements are introduced along with some common Wireless Sensor Network attacks and their counter measures. Finally, the project describes the software development process for Wireless Sensor Devices using TinyOS. The results of the project are a procedure for setting up the TinyOS development environment to program Wireless Sensor Devices to form a Wireless Sensor Network, and an analysis of Wireless Sensor Network security software suites such as\ud \ud \ud IEEE 802.15.4, ZigBee, SPINS (SNEP and uTesla), TinySec, SomeSec, TinyPK, and TinyECC.Computer Engineerin