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Theses and Dissertations

2012

Air Force Institute of Technology

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Full-Text Articles in Physical Sciences and Mathematics

Passive Ranging Using A Dispersive Spectrometer And Optical Filters, Jacob A. Martin Dec 2012

Passive Ranging Using A Dispersive Spectrometer And Optical Filters, Jacob A. Martin

Theses and Dissertations

Monocular passive ranging using atmospheric oxygen absorption has been demonstrated in the past using an FTS. These instruments are very sensitive to vibration making them di cult to use on an airborne platform. This work focuses on whether passive ranging can be done with instruments that are easier to deploy. Two potential instruments are tested and compared: a diffraction grating spectrometer and optical filters. A grating spectrometer was able to estimate range to within 5% for a static solid rocket motor ring at a distance of 910 m using the NIR absorption band of oxygen. Testing at shorter ranges produced …

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Epr And Endor Studies Of Point Defects In Lithium Tetraborate Crystals, Douglas A. Buchanan Dec 2012

Epr And Endor Studies Of Point Defects In Lithium Tetraborate Crystals, Douglas A. Buchanan

Theses and Dissertations

Lithium tetraborate (Li2B4O7 or LTB) is a promising material for both radiation dosimetry and neutron detection applications. LTB crystals can be grown pure or doped with different impurities including transition-metal and rare-earth ions. Research in this dissertation focuses on undoped LTB crystals and LTB crystals doped with copper and silver. Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) and electron-nuclear double resonance (ENDOR) are used to characterize point defects in the lithium tetraborate crystals. Thermoluminescence (TL), photoluminescence (PL), photoluminescence excitation (PLE), and optical absorption (OA) are also used. An intrinsic hole trap associated with lithium vacancies is characterized with EPR and ENDOR and its …

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Parametrizing Finite Frames And Optimal Frame Completions, Miriam J. Poteet Dec 2012

Parametrizing Finite Frames And Optimal Frame Completions, Miriam J. Poteet

Theses and Dissertations

Frames are used in many signal processing applications. We consider the problem of constructing every frame whose frame operator has a given spectrum and whose vectors have prescribed lengths. For a given spectrum and set of lengths, we know when such a frame exists by the Schur-Horn Theorem; it exists if and only if its spectrum majorizes its squared lengths. We provide a more constructive proof of Horn's original result. This proof is based on a new method for constructing any and all frames whose frame operator has a prescribed spectrum and whose vectors have prescribed lengths. Constructing all such …

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Creating Network Attack Priority Lists By Analyzing Email Traffic Using Predefined Profiles, Eric J. Merrit Sep 2012

Creating Network Attack Priority Lists By Analyzing Email Traffic Using Predefined Profiles, Eric J. Merrit

Theses and Dissertations

Networks can be vast and complicated entities consisting of both servers and workstations that contain information sought by attackers. Searching for specific data in a large network can be a time consuming process. Vast amounts of data either passes through or is stored by various servers on the network. However, intermediate work products are often kept solely on workstations. Potential high value targets can be passively identified by comparing user email traffic against predefined profiles. This method provides a potentially smaller footprint on target systems, less human interaction, and increased efficiency of attackers. Collecting user email traffic and comparing each …

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Quantifying Performance Bias In Label Fusion, Alexander M. Venzin Sep 2012

Quantifying Performance Bias In Label Fusion, Alexander M. Venzin

Theses and Dissertations

Classification systems are employed to remotely assess whether an element of interest falls into a target class or non-target class. These systems have uses in fields as far ranging as biostatistics to search engine keyword analysis. The performance of the system is often summarized as a trade-off between the proportions of elements correctly labeled as target plotted against the number of elements incorrectly labeled as target. These are empirical estimates of the true positive and false positive rates. These rates are often plotted to create a receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve that acts as a visual tool to assess classification …

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Utilizing Graphics Processing Units For Network Anomaly Detection, Jonathan D. Hersack Sep 2012

Utilizing Graphics Processing Units For Network Anomaly Detection, Jonathan D. Hersack

Theses and Dissertations

This research explores the benefits of using commonly-available graphics processing units (GPUs) to perform classification of network traffic using supervised machine learning algorithms. Two full factorial experiments are conducted using a NVIDIA GeForce GTX 280 graphics card. The goal of the first experiment is to create a baseline for the relative performance of the CPU and GPU implementations of artificial neural network (ANN) and support vector machine (SVM) detection methods under varying loads. The goal of the second experiment is to determine the optimal ensemble configuration for classifying processed packet payloads using the GPU anomaly detector. The GPU ANN achieves …

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Effects Of Architecture On Information Leakage Of A Hardware Advanced Encryption Standard Implementation, Eric A. Koziel Sep 2012

Effects Of Architecture On Information Leakage Of A Hardware Advanced Encryption Standard Implementation, Eric A. Koziel

Theses and Dissertations

Side-channel analysis (SCA) is a threat to many modern cryptosystems. Many countermeasures exist, but are costly to implement and still do not provide complete protection against SCA. A plausible alternative is to design the cryptosystem using architectures that are known to leak little information about the cryptosystem's operations. This research uses several common primitive architectures for the Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) and assesses the susceptibility of the full AES system to side-channel attack for various primitive configurations. A combined encryption/decryption core is also evaluated to determine if variation of high-level architectures affects leakage characteristics. These different configurations are evaluated under …

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Mapping Nuclear Fallout Using The Weather Research & Forecasting (Wrf) Model, Joseph C. Schofield Sep 2012

Mapping Nuclear Fallout Using The Weather Research & Forecasting (Wrf) Model, Joseph C. Schofield

Theses and Dissertations

There are many models that attempt to predict transport & dispersion (T&D) of particulate matter in the sensible atmosphere. The majority of these existing models are unable to incorporate atmospheric processes such wet deposition through scavenging and cloud condensation nuclei (CCN) formation. To this end, the numerical weather prediction (NWP) model known as the Weather Research & Forecasting with Chemistry (WRF/Chem) Model is studied to determine its suitability as a potential tool for predicting particulate T&D following an atmospheric nuclear detonation. This is done by modifying relevant modules, originally designed to predict the settling of volcanic ash, such that a …

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Decentralized Riemannian Particle Filtering With Applications To Multi-Agent Localization, Martin J. Eilders Jun 2012

Decentralized Riemannian Particle Filtering With Applications To Multi-Agent Localization, Martin J. Eilders

Theses and Dissertations

The primary focus of this research is to develop consistent nonlinear decentralized particle filtering approaches to the problem of multiple agent localization. A key aspect in our development is the use of Riemannian geometry to exploit the inherently non-Euclidean characteristics that are typical when considering multiple agent localization scenarios. A decentralized formulation is considered due to the practical advantages it provides over centralized fusion architectures. Inspiration is taken from the relatively new field of information geometry and the more established research field of computer vision. Differential geometric tools such as manifolds, geodesics, tangent spaces, exponential, and logarithmic mappings are used …

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Vulnerability Analysis Of The Player Command And Control Protocol, John T. Hagen Jun 2012

Vulnerability Analysis Of The Player Command And Control Protocol, John T. Hagen

Theses and Dissertations

The Player project is an open-source effort providing a control interface specification and software framework for abstracting robot hardware. This research presents five exploits that compromise vulnerabilities in Player's command and control protocol. The attacks exploit weaknesses in the ARP, IP, TCP and Player protocols to compromise the confidentially, integrity, and availability of communication between a Player client and server. The attacks assume a laptop is connected in promiscuous mode to the same Ethernet hub as the client and server in order to sniff all network traffic between them. This work also demonstrates that Internet Protocol Security (IPsec) is capable …

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Process Flow Features As A Host-Based Event Knowledge Representation, Benhur E. Pacer Jun 2012

Process Flow Features As A Host-Based Event Knowledge Representation, Benhur E. Pacer

Theses and Dissertations

The detection of malware is of great importance but even non-malicious software can be used for malicious purposes. Monitoring processes and their associated information can characterize normal behavior and help identify malicious processes or malicious use of normal process by measuring deviations from the learned baseline. This exploratory research describes a novel host feature generation process that calculates statistics of an executing process during a window of time called a process flow. Process flows are calculated from key process data structures extracted from computer memory using virtual machine introspection. Each flow cluster generated using k-means of the flow features represents …

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Cross Hallway Detection And Indoor Localization Using Flash Laser Detection And Ranging, Istvan M. Prileszky Jun 2012

Cross Hallway Detection And Indoor Localization Using Flash Laser Detection And Ranging, Istvan M. Prileszky

Theses and Dissertations

A flash LADAR is investigated as a source of navigation information to support cross-hallway detection and relative localization. To accomplish this, a dynamic, flexible simulation was developed that simulated the LADAR and the noise of a LADAR system. Using simulated LADAR data, algorithms were developed that were shown to be effective at detecting cross hallways in simulated ideal environments and in simulated environments with noise. Relative position was determined in the same situations. A SwissRanger SR4000 flash LADAR was then used to collect real data and to verify algorithm performance in real environments. Hallway detection was shown to be possible …

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Resource Provisioning In Large-Scale Self-Organizing Distributed Systems, M. Brent Reynolds Jun 2012

Resource Provisioning In Large-Scale Self-Organizing Distributed Systems, M. Brent Reynolds

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation researches the mathematical translation of resource provisioning policy into mathematical terms and parameters to solve the on-line service placement problem. A norm called the Provisioning Norm is introduced. Theorems presented in the work show the Provisioning Norm utility function and greedy, random, local search effectively and efficiently solve the on-line problem. Caching of placements is shown to reduce the cost of change but does not improve response time performance. The use of feedback control theory is shown to be effective at significantly improving performance but increases the cost of change. The theoretical results are verified using a decentralized, …

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Implementation Of Branch-Point-Tolerant Wavefront Reconstructor For Strong Turbulence Compensation, Michael J. Steinbock Jun 2012

Implementation Of Branch-Point-Tolerant Wavefront Reconstructor For Strong Turbulence Compensation, Michael J. Steinbock

Theses and Dissertations

Branch points arise in optical transmissions due to strong atmospheric turbulence, long propagation paths, or a combination of both. Unfortunately, these conditions are very often present in desired operational scenarios for laser weapon systems, optical communication, and covert imaging, which suffer greatly when traditional adaptive optics systems either cannot sense branch points or implement non-optimal methods for sensing and correcting branch points. Previous research by Pellizzari presented a thorough analysis of various novel branch point tolerant reconstructors in the absence of noise. In this research a realistic model of the Air Force Institute of Technology's adaptive optics system is developed …

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Calibration Of A Silver Detector Using A Pube Source, Melanie E. Mace Jun 2012

Calibration Of A Silver Detector Using A Pube Source, Melanie E. Mace

Theses and Dissertations

During the initial design of the Field Reversed Compression and Heating Experiment (FRCHX), magnetohydrodynamic simulations performed by Los Alamos National Laboratory using MACH2 predicted a neutron yield on the order of 1012 neutrons. However, Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) measurements indicate a total of 107-108 neutrons are generated from the FRCHX. A PuBe source was used to create a burst of neutrons to calibrate an AFRL silver detector based on distance to determine if the four order of magnitude discrepancy was cause by an improperly calibrated detector. It was determined that the calibration equation in use …

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Application Of An Imaging Fourier-Transform Spectrometer For The Means Of Combustion Diagnostics, Michael R. Rhoby Jun 2012

Application Of An Imaging Fourier-Transform Spectrometer For The Means Of Combustion Diagnostics, Michael R. Rhoby

Theses and Dissertations

A passive remote sensing technique for accurately monitoring the combustion efficiency of petrochemical flares is greatly desired. A Phase II DOE-funded SBIR lead by Spectral Sciences, Inc. is underway to develop such a method. This paper presents an overview of the progress of AFIT's contribution. A Telops Hyper-Cam Mid-wave infrared imaging Fourier-transform spectrometer is used to examine a flame produced by a Hencken burner. Ethylene fuel was burned at four different equivalency ratios φ = 0:80; 0:91; 1:0 and 1:25. Presented is qualitative spectrally-resolved visualization of a Hencken burner flame and the spatial distribution of combustion by-products. The flame spectra …

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The White-Hat Bot: A Novel Botnet Defense Strategy, Tyrone C. Gubler Jun 2012

The White-Hat Bot: A Novel Botnet Defense Strategy, Tyrone C. Gubler

Theses and Dissertations

Botnets are a threat to computer systems and users around the world. Botmasters can range from annoying spam email propagators to nefarious criminals. These criminals attempt to take down networks or web servers through distributed denial-of-service attacks, to steal corporate secrets, or to launder money from individuals or corporations. As the number and severity of successful botnet attacks rise, computer security experts need to develop better early-detection and removal techniques to protect computer networks and individual computer users from these very real threats. I will define botnets and describe some of their common purposes and current uses. Next, I will …

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Forensic Memory Analysis For Apple Os X, Andrew F. Hay Jun 2012

Forensic Memory Analysis For Apple Os X, Andrew F. Hay

Theses and Dissertations

Analysis of raw memory dumps has become a critical capability in digital forensics because it gives insight into the state of a system that cannot be fully represented through traditional disk analysis. Interest in memory forensics has grown steadily in recent years, with a focus on the Microsoft Windows operating systems. However, similar capabilities for Linux and Apple OS X have lagged by comparison. The volafox open source project has begun work on structured memory analysis for OS X. The tool currently supports a limited set of kernel structures to parse hardware information, system build number, process listing, loaded kernel …

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Enhancing Trust In The Smart Grid By Applying A Modified Exponentially Weighted Averages Algorithm, Andrew T. Kasperek Jun 2012

Enhancing Trust In The Smart Grid By Applying A Modified Exponentially Weighted Averages Algorithm, Andrew T. Kasperek

Theses and Dissertations

The main contribution of this thesis is the development and application of a modified Exponentially Weighted Moving Algorithm (EWMA) algorithm, and its ability to robustly function in the face varying numbers of bad (malicious or malfunctioning) Special Protection System (SPS) nodes. Simulation results support the use of the proposed modified EWMA reputation based trust module in SPSs within a smart grid environment. This modification results in the ability to easily maintain the system above the minimum acceptable frequency of 58.8 Hz at the 95% confidence interval, when challenged with test cases containing 5, 10 and 15 bad node test cases …

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Short Message Service (Sms) Command And Control (C2) Awareness In Android-Based Smartphones Using Kernel-Level Auditing, Robert J. Olipane Jun 2012

Short Message Service (Sms) Command And Control (C2) Awareness In Android-Based Smartphones Using Kernel-Level Auditing, Robert J. Olipane

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis addresses the emerging threat of botnets in the smartphone domain and focuses on the Android platform and botnets using short message service (SMS) as the command and control (C2) channel. With any botnet, C2 is the most important component contributing to its overall resilience, stealthiness, and effectiveness. This thesis develops a passive host-based approach for identifying covert SMS traffic and providing awareness to the user. Modifying the kernel and implementing this awareness mechanism is achieved by developing and inserting a loadable kernel module that logs all inbound SMS messages as they are sent from the baseband radio to …

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Using Predictive Analytics To Detect Major Problems In Department Of Defense Acquisition Programs, Austin W. Dowling Mar 2012

Using Predictive Analytics To Detect Major Problems In Department Of Defense Acquisition Programs, Austin W. Dowling

Theses and Dissertations

This research provides program analysts and Department of Defense (DoD) leadership with an approach to identify problems in real-time for acquisition contracts. Specifically, we develop optimization algorithms to detect unusual changes in acquisition programs’ Earned Value data streams. The research is focused on three questions. First, can we predict the contractor provided estimate at complete (EAC)? Second, can we use those predictions to develop an algorithm to determine if a problem will occur in an acquisition program or subprogram? Lastly, can we provide the probability of a problem occurring within a given timeframe? We find three of our models establish …

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Optimization Of Nanoscale Zero-Valent Iron For The Remediation Of Groundwater Contaminants, Andrew W. E. Mcpherson Mar 2012

Optimization Of Nanoscale Zero-Valent Iron For The Remediation Of Groundwater Contaminants, Andrew W. E. Mcpherson

Theses and Dissertations

Nanoscale zero-valent iron (nZVI) is an emerging tool for the remediation of groundwater contaminants. The nanoparticles are capable of reductively destroying or immobilizing a wide range of contaminants. Their small size results in a high surface area to mass ratio, making them much more reactive compared to their more-coarse predecessors. Small particle size also allows nZVI particles to be injected directly into contaminated areas via a well, limiting the above-ground footprint and allowing access to contaminated areas that are beyond the reach of some conventional methods. nZVI technology has the potential to facilitate remediation in difficult situations, improve remediation outcomes, …

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Comparative Analysis Of Two Biological Warfare Air Samplers Using Live Surrogate Agents, James C. Enderby Mar 2012

Comparative Analysis Of Two Biological Warfare Air Samplers Using Live Surrogate Agents, James C. Enderby

Theses and Dissertations

The United States Air Force has several high-volume biological air samplers, including the XMX/2L-MIL and the Biocapture 650. Limited information is available on either in terms of its collection of viruses and bacteria. However, previous research on the XMX/2L-MIL has determined that modifications to the secondary flow rate and the use of a virus preserving collection media may provide improved virus collection rates. In this thesis, these modifications were investigated to determine their impact on the collection of viral and bacterial aerosols. Additionally, relative collection rates were compared against those for the Biocapture 650. MS2 bacteriophage was the viral surrogate …

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Electrical And Optical Characterization Of Si-Ge-Sn, Merle D. Hamilton Mar 2012

Electrical And Optical Characterization Of Si-Ge-Sn, Merle D. Hamilton

Theses and Dissertations

The electrical characterization of boron-doped p-Si0.08Ge0.90Sn0.02/p-Ge(100) and p-Si0.112Ge0.86Sn0.028/n-Si(100) with various epilayer thicknesses was measured using the Hall effect. The room temperature sheet carrier concentration ranged from 1.21 x 1013 – 1.32 x 1016 cm-2. The room temperature mobilities were measured to be between 166 and 717 cm2/V·s, depending on sample composition. In the low temperature regime, the mobility was mainly affected by ionized impurity scattering. In the high temperature regime, the mobility was mainly affected by …

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The Focusing Of Light Scattered From Diffuse Reflectors Using Phase Modulation, Jessica M. Schafer Mar 2012

The Focusing Of Light Scattered From Diffuse Reflectors Using Phase Modulation, Jessica M. Schafer

Theses and Dissertations

“Indirect photography" was recently demonstrated for imaging hidden scene information through the collection and radiometric modeling of light reflecting off of visible reflecting surfaces. The ability to focus the beam that reflects off the visible surface to a tight spot on the hidden object is theorized to simulate a direct line of sight from the light source to the object, reducing the radiometric model to that of the previously demonstrated dual photography. Experiments involving the focusing of light transmitted through highly scattering media have been adapted to the case of reflection. The focusing of a HeNe laser reflected off diffusely …

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Comparative Statistical Analysis Of Auroral Models, Cory T. Lane Mar 2012

Comparative Statistical Analysis Of Auroral Models, Cory T. Lane

Theses and Dissertations

The location of the equatorward boundary of the auroral oval provides an appropriate means to measure the accuracy of auroral models. In this study, the equatorward boundary is represented by the location at which the energy flux data measured by DMSP satellites exceeds 0.4 erg/cm2/s. The MLAT coordinates obtained from more than 4,000 orbits through the polar region of the Northern Hemisphere comprise the data set used to compare to the outputs of five auroral models. These models are: the original Hardy auroral model of 1985 (OH), the OVATION Prime model (OP), the 2008 adaptation to the Hardy …

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A Dempster-Shafer Method For Multi-Sensor Fusion, Bethany G. Foley Mar 2012

A Dempster-Shafer Method For Multi-Sensor Fusion, Bethany G. Foley

Theses and Dissertations

The Dempster-Shafer Theory, a generalization of the Bayesian theory, is based on the idea of belief and as such can handle ignorance. When all of the required information is available, many data fusion methods provide a solid approach. Yet, most do not have a good way of dealing with ignorance. In the absence of information, these methods must then make assumptions about the sensor data. However, the real data may not fit well within the assumed model. Consequently, the results are often unsatisfactory and inconsistent. The Dempster-Shafer Theory is not hindered by incomplete models or by the lack of prior …

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Magnesium Object Manager Sandbox, A More Effective Sandbox Method For Windows 7, Martin A. Gilligan Mar 2012

Magnesium Object Manager Sandbox, A More Effective Sandbox Method For Windows 7, Martin A. Gilligan

Theses and Dissertations

A major issue in computer security is limiting the affects a program can have on a computer. One way is to place the program into a sandbox, a limited environment. Many attempts have been made to create a sandbox that maintains the usability of a program and effectively limits the effects of the program. Sandboxes that limit the resources programs can access, have succeeded. To test the effectiveness of a sandbox that limits the resources a program can access on Windows 7, the Magnesium Object Manager Sandbox (MOMS) is created. MOMS uses a kernel mode Windows component to monitor and …

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An Analysis Of Error Reconciliation Protocols For Use In Quantum Key Distribution, James S. Johnson Mar 2012

An Analysis Of Error Reconciliation Protocols For Use In Quantum Key Distribution, James S. Johnson

Theses and Dissertations

Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) is a method for transmitting a cryptographic key between a sender and receiver in a theoretically unconditionally secure way. Unfortunately, the present state of technology prohibits the flawless quantum transmission required to make QKD a reality. For this reason, error reconciliation protocols have been developed which preserve security while allowing a sender and receiver to reconcile the errors in their respective keys. The most famous of these protocols is Brassard and Salvail's Cascade, which is effective, but suffers from a high communication complexity and therefore results in low throughput. Another popular option is Buttler's Winnow protocol, …

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Security Verification Of Secure Manet Routing Protocols, Matthew F. Steele Mar 2012

Security Verification Of Secure Manet Routing Protocols, Matthew F. Steele

Theses and Dissertations

Secure mobile ad hoc network (MANET) routing protocols are not tested thoroughly against their security properties. Previous research focuses on verifying secure, reactive, accumulation-based routing protocols. An improved methodology and framework for secure MANET routing protocol verification is proposed which includes table-based and proactive protocols. The model checker, SPIN, is selected as the core of the secure MANET verification framework. Security is defined by both accuracy and availability: a protocol forms accurate routes and these routes are always accurate. The framework enables exhaustive verification of protocols and results in a counter-example if the protocol is deemed insecure. The framework is …

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