Proximity Detection with Single-Antenna IoT Devices
Timothy J. Pierson, Travis Peters, Ronald Peterson, and David Kotz.
Proximity Detection with Single-Antenna IoT Devices.
Proceedings of the ACM International Conference on Mobile Computing and Networking (MobiCom), article 21, 15 pages.
ACM, October 2019.
doi:10.1145/3300061.3300120.
©Copyright ACM.
Revision of pierson:snap-poster.
Abstract:
Providing secure communications between wireless devices that encounter each other on an ad-hoc basis is a challenge that has not yet been fully addressed. In these cases, close physical proximity among devices that have never shared a secret key is sometimes used as a basis of trust; devices in close proximity are deemed trustworthy while more distant devices are viewed as potential adversaries. Because radio waves are invisible, however, a user may believe a wireless device is communicating with a nearby device when in fact the user’s device is communicating with a distant adversary. Researchers have previously proposed methods for multi-antenna devices to ascertain physical proximity with other devices, but devices with a single antenna, such as those commonly used in the Internet of Things, cannot take advantage of these techniques.
We present theoretical and practical evaluation of a method called SNAP -- SiNgle Antenna Proximity -- that allows a single-antenna Wi-Fi device to quickly determine proximity with another Wi-Fi device. Our proximity detection technique leverages the repeating nature Wi-Fi’s preamble and the behavior of a signal in a transmitting antenna’s near-field region to detect proximity with high probability; SNAP never falsely declares proximity at ranges longer than 14 cm. Citable with [BibTeX]: \cite{pierson:snap} Projects: [thaw] Keywords: [authentication] [iot] [security] [wifi] Available from the publisher: [DOI] [video] Available from the author:
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