Security enhancements in WiMAX mesh networks

In WiMAX mesh networks, security is a vital requirement to prevent the threats from the malicious attacks. To join an active mesh network securely, a Candidate Node (CN) needs to perform a Network Entry Process (NEP) to complete authentication and registration. However, most studies have shown that NEP is vulnerable to different type of attacks. Recently, a solution of NEP with Reliable Counter (NEPRC) scheme has been proposed to claims that it can overcome selfish behaviors of Sponsor Nodes (SNs) and the topological attacks. In this paper, we discover that the scheme is unable to detect the topological threats. We analyze the vulnerabilities of the NEPRC scheme and propose an improved solution to detect and prevent the topological attacks including wormhole attacks and sinkhole attacks completely. Our analysis by Color Petri Net (CPN) shows that the proposed scheme could withstand the two topological attacks.