PROXIMITY-BASED ACCESS CONTROL FOR IMPLANTABLE MEDICAL DEVICES

We propose a proximity-based access control scheme for implantable medical devices (IMDs). Our scheme is based on ultrasonic distance bounding and enables an implanted medical device to grant access to its resources only to those devices that are in its close proximity. We demonstrate the feasibility of our approach through tests in an emulated patient environment. We show that, although implanted, IMDs can successfully verify the proximity of other devices with high accuracy. We propose a set of protocols that support our scheme, analyze their security in detail and discuss possible extensions. We make new observations about the security of implementations of ultrasonic distance-bounding protocols. Finally, we discuss the integration of our scheme with existing IMD devices and with their existing security measures.

People:

Kasper Bonne Rasmussen, Claude Castelluccia, Thomas S. Heydt-Benjamin, Srdjan Capkun

Publication:

Proximity-based Access Control for Implantable Medical Devices, In Proceedings of the ACM Conference on Computer and Communications Security (CCS), 2009 [PDF | bibtex]

LOCATION PRIVACY OF DISTANCE BOUNDING PROTOCOLS

We analyze, in a number of scenarios, how much information distance bounding protocols leak. We further discuss several straightforward countermeasures and show why they do not provide adequate protection against distance leakage. Finally, we propose a location private distance bounding protocol that maintains the properties of existing distance bounding protocols while leaking no information about the distance measured between the communicating parties.

Read more on the project web page.

People:

Kasper Bonne Rasmussen, Srdjan Capkun

Publication:

Location Privacy of Distance Bounding Protocols
In Proceedings of the ACM Conference on Computer and Communications Security (CCS), 2008 [PDF]

UNCOORDINATED FREQUENCY HOPPING

We consider the problem of how two devices that do not share any secrets can establish a shared secret key over a wireless radio channel in the presence of a communication jammer, i.e., in the absence of a reliable communication channel. As a solution, we propose an Uncoordinated Frequency Hopping (UFH) scheme that breaks the dependency on a shared secret key and enables key establishment in the presence of a communication jammer.

Read more on the project web page.

People:

Mario Strasser, Christina Pöpper, Srdjan Capkun, Mario Cagalj

Publications:

Efficient Uncoordinated FHSS Anti-Jamming Communication,
in Proceedings of the ACM Symposium on Mobile Ad Hoc Networking and Computing (MobiHoc), 2009 [PDF]

Jamming-resistant Key Establishment using Uncoordinated Frequency Hopping,
in Proceedings of IEEE Symposium on Security and Privacy, 2008 [PDF]