Securing building management systems using named data networking

Recently, building automation and management systems, BASs and BMSs, have shifted from using proprietary protocols and specialized hardware toward widespread adoption of IP-based open standard technologies. While the IP protocol suite improves software and hardware interoperability, practical large-scale BMS deployments face challenges, including the complexity of network addressing and other configuration, reliance on middleware for even relatively simple tasks, and a lack of security. In this article, we propose a data-centric BMS design that uses named data networking, one of the proposed information-centric networking architecture designs. Our sensor data acquisition system uses a hierarchical namespace for data, encryption keys, and access control lists, implements encryption-based access control, and provides a web browser-based data visualization interface that communicates in NDN. Our design has been deployed on a UCLA campus testbed that captures, archives, and visualizes data from industry standard sensors.