An investigation of defence protocols for the mitigation of grey hole attacks in flying ad hoc networks

Abstract

Flying ad hoc networks (FANETs) are networks of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs)which are especially susceptible to subtle packet-dropping threats known as grey hole attacks (GHAs). GHAs vary in intensity and timing and can be easily confused with mobility-induced losses, which undermines detection systems and trust-based routing. This thesis presents three principal contributions. First, a time-series FANET dataset is compiled and paired with an Early Time-Series Classification (ETSC) model that prioritises both detection accuracy and timeliness using node interaction histories and mobility features. Second, this thesis presents FANET-Rank, a game-theoretic evaluation framework that profiles defence protocols across multiple GHA threats and varying environmental conditions, producing robust and informative protocol rankings. Third, the Mobility-Conditioned Direct Trust (MCDT) mechanism establishes a trust-management method that conditions trust estimates on immediate mobility context as well as historical evidence to increase the reliability of trust scores. Simulations using NS-3 validate these contributions.

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Identifiers

ORCID for Leonardo Aniello: orcid.org/0000-0003-2886-8445

ORCID for Enrico Gerding: orcid.org/0000-0001-7200-552X

ORCID for Basel Halak: orcid.org/0000-0003-3470-7226

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