Optimization of message encryption for distributed embedded systems with real-time constraints

In this paper we consider distributed embedded systems in which privacy or confidentiality of the internal communication is critical, and present an approach to optimizing cryptographic algorithms under strict timing constraints. We have developed a technique to search for the best system-affordable cryptographic protection for the messages transmitted over the internal communication bus. Towards this, we formulate the optimization technique in Constraint Logic Programming (CLP), which returns optimal results. However, CLP executions are computationally expensive and hence, we propose an efficient heuristic as an alternative. Extensive experiments demonstrate the efficiency of the proposed heuristic approach.