ABSTRACT
Unlike a general-purpose computer, an embedded system is defined as a specialized device performing fewer but well-defined tasks. This chapter analyzes secure design methods for very low-power wireless embedded devices used in radio-frequency identification (RFID) and wireless sensor systems. Although design and operation principles are very simple, widespread use of RFID technology comes with complex security and privacy issues. Sensitive health-monitoring tasks and biometric data use are growing in low-power wireless applications, hence the demand for dependable secure operation is increasing. Active RFID tags and wireless sensor network (WSN) nodes are almost identical in technology yet few studies target the combined general class. The main focus of this work is the common security issues of RFID and wireless sensor systems. Both the individual sensor node and the RFID tag are treated under the main title of “Low-power wireless embedded device.”
Operatingprinciples and related protocol standards are summarized alongwith their different security implications on the system design. An overview of secure hardware and firmware design principles, major attacks, and countermeasures and related cryptographic algorithms are presented.
