Dynamic Mix-Zone for Location Privacy in Vehicular Networks

Location privacy is an important issue in vehicular networks since knowledge of a vehicle's location can result in leakage of sensitive information. In this paper, we propose a method, named Dynamic Mix-zone for Location Privacy (DMLP). With DMLP, a vehicle' s mix-zone is dynamically formed at the time the vehicle requests it. The size of the mix-zone is determined by the vehicle's predicted location, the traffic statistics and the level of vehicle's privacy requirement. In order to provide unlinkability of new and old pseudonyms and locations, DMLP encrypts messages when transmitted while the vehicle is within the mix-zone. Simulation based analysis shows that DMLP offers a high level of location privacy and can be used regardless of the nature of the road at the location of the vehicle,e.g. highway, rural road or street in the downtown area of a city.