Blockchain-based Edge Device Authentication Mechanism in SDN-enabled IoT Networks

The Internet of Things (IoT) is a complex network of intelligent and interactive physical devices that exchange data with minimal human intervention. Developing IoT security frameworks is one of the predominant requirements for effectively deploying IoT applications and services. However, IoT devices are resource-constrained and cannot handle the complex algorithms of edge device authentication. Software-defined Networking (SDN) features are advantageous for realizing IoT security frameworks as the data plane is separated from the control plane. The legacy infrastructure can also be integrated with the modern IoT frameworks using SDN. However, the single SDN controller suffers from a single point of failure. To overcome this issue, we proposed a Blockchain-based mechanism to integrate IoT devices with SDN architectures for efficient control and authentication. We considered the fog nodes as SDN controllers and Blockchain nodes, responsible for Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC)-based key generation and refreshment. The IoT devices’ public, private, and shared secret keys are stored on the Blockchain ledger. We leveraged Routing Protocol for Low Power and Lossy Networks (RPL) and Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) for intra (among IoT devices) and inter (among SDN controllers) network communication. The experimental results have proven the efficiency of the Blockchain-based scheme in terms of lower registration and authentication times than the isolated SDN controller-based IoT device registration.