Jamming Attacks and Anti-Jamming Strategies in Wireless Networks: A Comprehensive Survey (2101.00292v1)

Abstract: Wireless networks are a key component of the telecommunications infrastructure in our society, and wireless services become increasingly important as the applications of wireless devices have penetrated every aspect of our lives. Although wireless technologies have significantly advanced in the past decades, most wireless networks are still vulnerable to radio jamming attacks due to the openness nature of wireless channels, and the progress in the design of jamming-resistant wireless networking systems remains limited. This stagnation can be attributed to the lack of practical physical-layer wireless technologies that can efficiently decode data packets in the presence of jamming attacks. This article surveys existing jamming attacks and anti-jamming strategies in wireless local area networks (WLANs), cellular networks, cognitive radio networks (CRNs), ZigBee networks, Bluetooth networks, vehicular networks, LoRa networks, RFID networks, and GPS system, with the objective of offering a comprehensive knowledge landscape of existing jamming/anti-jamming strategies and stimulating more research efforts to secure wireless networks against jamming attacks. Different from prior survey papers, this article conducts a comprehensive, in-depth review on jamming and anti-jamming strategies, casting insights on the design of jamming-resilient wireless networking systems. An outlook on promising antijamming techniques is offered at the end of this article to delineate important research directions.

• The paper surveys and categorizes diverse jamming attacks and anti-jamming strategies across numerous wireless network types including cellular, Wi-Fi, vehicular, and more.
• It highlights vulnerabilities in current wireless standards and discusses practical challenges in deploying anti-jamming solutions in real-world networks.
• It explores advanced countermeasures including cross-layer designs and machine learning, emphasizing the need for evolving defense mechanisms and future research.

Overview of "Jamming Attacks and Anti-Jamming Strategies in Wireless Networks: A Comprehensive Survey"

The proliferation of wireless communication technologies has significantly enhanced connectivity across various sectors, yet it inherently exposes wireless networks to security vulnerabilities, specifically to jamming attacks. The paper, authored by Hossein Pirayesh and Huacheng Zeng from Michigan State University, provides an extensive survey of jamming attacks and anti-jamming strategies, spanning multiple types of wireless networks such as WLANs, cellular networks, cognitive radio networks (CRNs), ZigBee, Bluetooth, vehicular networks, LoRa, RFID, and GPS systems. The authors meticulously categorize, analyze, and compare existing techniques to furnish a comprehensive picture of the current landscape and propose potential paths for future research in securing wireless networks against jamming attacks.

Key Contributions and Insights

1. Categorization of Jamming Attacks:
   • The authors differentiate between various jamming tactics such as constant, reactive, and deceptive jamming attacks, underscoring their detrimental impact on wireless system security. They elucidate how these attacks leverage weaknesses in both the physical (PHY) and medium access control (MAC) layers across different wireless architectures.
2. Assessment of Vulnerabilities:
   • A significant portion of the research draws attention to the inherent vulnerabilities in contemporary wireless communication standards like LTE, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and ZigBee. The examination extends to specialized networks such as vehicular networks (VANETs) and unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) networks, providing insights into the ease of executing jamming tactics due to the openness of wireless channels.
3. Anti-Jamming Strategies:
   • Numerous countermeasures are discussed, ranging from traditional methods like frequency hopping and spectrum spreading (DSSS, FHSS) to more sophisticated techniques employing MIMO technology for jamming mitigation. The authors highlight the importance of developing comprehensive anti-jamming solutions that can adapt to the evolving nature of jamming attacks.
4. Cross-Layer and Cross-Domain Approaches:
   • The paper advocates for cross-layer designs combining PHY and MAC techniques and cross-domain methods that simultaneously exploit time, frequency, and space domains for enhanced resilience against jamming. Such approaches are underscored as crucial for providing robust security in future wireless systems.
5. Machine Learning and Game Theory:
   • The integration of machine learning and game-theoretical frameworks in designing adaptive anti-jamming mechanisms is explored. These methods demonstrate potential in dynamically countering smart jamming attacks by learning and predicting jamming behaviors.
6. Practical Implications and Challenges:
   • Notably, the survey delineates the practical challenges involved in real-world deployment of anti-jamming techniques, such as computational complexity, device hardware limitations, and maintaining network efficiency while ensuring security.

Implications and Future Directions

The paper posits that while significant advancements have been made in identifying and counteracting jamming attacks, the escalating complexity and sophistication of these threats necessitate an ongoing evolution of defense mechanisms. The survey encourages further exploration in various directions, including:

• Development of MIMO-based jamming mitigation techniques that are not only effective but also computationally efficient for real-time applications.
• Enhancing cross-layer strategies that holistically consider the synergies between different network layers to better safeguard against sophisticated jamming tactics.
• Leveraging AI and machine learning to create intelligent systems capable of preemptively identifying and neutralizing jamming threats with minimal human intervention.
• Investigating the potential of 5G and beyond wireless systems in providing inherent security features against jamming attacks due to their architectural flexibility and advanced resource management capabilities.

In conclusion, Pirayesh and Zeng's comprehensive survey serves as a critical resource for researchers seeking to fortify wireless networks against jamming attacks, offering both a detailed analysis of existing methodologies and motivating future innovations in anti-jamming technologies.