WAP: Wormhole Attack Prevention Algorithm in Mobile Ad Hoc Networks

In wireless ad hoc networks, nodes compromise to forward packets for each other to communicate beyond their transmission range. Therefore, networks are vulnerable to wormhole attacks launched through compromised nodes because malicious nodes can easily participate in the networks. In wormhole attacks, one malicious node tunnels packets from its location to the other malicious node. Such wormhole attacks result in a false route with fewer. If source node chooses this fake route, malicious nodes have the option of delivering the packets or dropping them. It is difficult to detect wormhole attacks because malicious nodes impersonate legitimate nodes. Previous algorithms detecting a wormhole require special hardware or tight time synchronization. In this paper, we develop an effective method called wormhole attack prevention (WAP) without using specialized hardware. The WAP not only detects the fake route but also adopts preventive measures against action wormhole nodes from reappearing during the route discovery phase. Simulation results show that wormholes can be detected and isolated within the route discovery phase.