Secure Key Distribution for IoT Networks Based on Physical Layer Security

Internet of Things (IoT) technology has spread across many fields. IoT networks contain a large number of devices that work together and exchange a large amount of information, which increases the risk of attacks. Data is usually encrypted using a secret key shared among the communicating nodes to avoid being revealed to an attacker. Thus, key distribution should be securely accomplished. However, conventional key distribution schemes may not be sufficient in the context of IoT networks as they consume both time and energy from a resource constrained network. Therefore, there arises a need to distribute different keys in a more efficient and secure manner. In this paper, a new scheme is proposed to improving IoT networks security by using a physical-layer key distribution mechanism to distribute keys among all nodes within the network. In the proposed scheme, all the keys are sent simultaneously and only the intended node can successfully obtain its own key through its estimated channel phase. Analytical and simulation results prove the high performance of the proposed scheme and its immunity against eavesdroppers.