Open Access

ARTICLE

RPL-Based IoT Networks under Decreased Rank Attack: Performance Analysis in Static and Mobile Environments

Amal Hkiri^1,*, Mouna Karmani¹, Omar Ben Bahri², Ahmed Mohammed Murayr², Fawaz Hassan Alasmari², Mohsen Machhout¹

1 Physic Department, Electronics and Micro-Electronics Laboratory, Faculty of Sciences of Monastir, Monastir, 5000, Tunisia
2 Department of Science and Technology, College of Ranyah, Taif University, P.O. Box 11099, Taif, 21944, Saudi Arabia

* Corresponding Author: Amal Hkiri. Email:

(This article belongs to the Special Issue: Security and Privacy for Blockchain-empowered Internet of Things)

Computers, Materials & Continua 2024, 78(1), 227-247. https://doi.org/10.32604/cmc.2023.047087

Received 24 October 2023; Accepted 07 December 2023; Issue published 30 January 2024

Abstract

The RPL (IPv6 Routing Protocol for Low-Power and Lossy Networks) protocol is essential for efficient communication within the Internet of Things (IoT) ecosystem. Despite its significance, RPL’s susceptibility to attacks remains a concern. This paper presents a comprehensive simulation-based analysis of the RPL protocol’s vulnerability to the decreased rank attack in both static and mobile network environments. We employ the Random Direction Mobility Model (RDM) for mobile scenarios within the Cooja simulator. Our systematic evaluation focuses on critical performance metrics, including Packet Delivery Ratio (PDR), Average End to End Delay (AE2ED), throughput, Expected Transmission Count (ETX), and Average Power Consumption (APC). Our findings illuminate the disruptive impact of this attack on the routing hierarchy, resulting in decreased PDR and throughput, increased AE2ED, ETX, and APC. These results underscore the urgent need for robust security measures to protect RPL-based IoT networks. Furthermore, our study emphasizes the exacerbated impact of the attack in mobile scenarios, highlighting the evolving security requirements of IoT networks.

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Keywords

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