Non-zero-sum game-based trust model to enhance wireless sensor networks security for IoT applications

Nowadays, trust models of wireless sensor networks (WSNs) security have flourished due to the day-to-day attack challenges, which are most popular for internet of things (IoT). This article proposes a trust model based on non-zero-sum game approach for clustered-WSNs (CWSNs) security to maximise the data trustworthiness transmission. The proposed model is developed for two different attack-defence scenarios. In the first scenario, the trust model is used to face a denial-of-service (DoS) attack in which the attacker is able to drop or partially drop the delivered acknowledgments (ACKs) from a cluster member (CM) to the cluster head (CH). In the second scenario, the model target is to protect CWSNs from ON-OFF attack where the attacker is capable to frequently infect the CMs. Simulation results show improved performance of protecting the CWSNs against DoS/ON-OFF attacks and maximising data trustworthiness represented by the CMs compliance of sending the ACKs to the CH. Consequently, this mechanism can attain the appropriate security and performance for WSN-based IoT systems.