Is Straight-line Path Always the Best for Intrusion Detection in Wireless Sensor Networks

Intrusion detection is prominently important for civil and military applications in wireless sensor networks (WSNs). It is defined as the mechanism to detect moving intruder(s) by single-sensing or jointly-sensing detection. To date, related works focus on the problem of network configuration for detecting intruder(s) within a pre-specified time/distance threshold by assuming a straight line intrusion path of the intruder. However, straight line intrusion path is often not the case in reality. An intruder can invade the network following a curved path or even a random walk in order to improve its attacking probability. Therefore, the results based on the assumption of a straight line intrusion path may not hold. In view of this, we are to address the problem from another angle, i.e., the effects of different intrusion paths on the intrusion detection probability in an arbitrary wireless sensor network. First, we propose a novel Sine Curve mobility model that can simulate different intrusion paths by adjusting its features such as amplitude, frequency, and phase. Next we are to explore the effects of different intrusion paths of the intruder on the intrusion detection probability in an arbitrary wireless sensor network. In other words, we are to investigate the following question theoretically and experimentally: Is straight-line path always optimal for intruder(s) to adopt for minimizing the detection probability of an arbitrary WSN, so as to maximize its attacking probability? Simulation outcomes are shown to match well with the analytical results, and therefore validate our analysis and conclusion.