SECURITY IN MANET: ATTACKS AND SOLUTIONS

Abstract

Security is a primary concern and the communication between the mobile nodes must be protected. The
mobile ad hoc network (MANET) pose a number of challenges in the security design such as shared wireless medium,
resource constraints, and highly dynamic network topology. A MANET is an infrastructure less network and an
autonomous system of mobile nodes connected by wireless links. Each node operates not only as a host but as a router to
forward the packets. The nodes are free to move and organize themselves into a network. They change positions
frequently. Nodes can directly communicate to all other nodes within the radio communication range. If a node could
not have direct communication then they can use intermediate nodes to communicate with other nodes. The security is of
major concern and there are more chances for vulnerabilities. The attacker may use different approaches to decrease the
network performance and throughput. In this paper, the principal focus is on the security criteria of the mobile ad-hoc
network and presents the main attack types that exist in it. Finally we survey the current security solutions for MANET.