A Survey of Edge Caching Security: Framework, Methods, and Challenges

Abstract

Edge caching reduces the frequent communication between users and remote cloud servers by caching popular content at the network edge, which can decrease response latency and improve the user service experience. However, the openness and vulnerability of edge caching introduce several security risks. The existing research work on edge caching security only focuses on certain specific aspects and does not consider edge caching security from a global perspective. Therefore, the paper provides a comprehensive review of edge caching security in order to accelerate the development of related research areas. Specifically, this paper first introduces the traditional and extended models of edge caching, the threats to edge caching, and the key metrics for implementing edge caching security. Then, we propose a comprehensive security framework of edge caching that considers content request security, content transmission security, content caching security, and multi-party trusted collaboration. Moreover, the four aspects of security framework are respectively discussed in detail, aiming to achieve security protection for edge caching. Finally, a discussion is provided on the shortcomings of current edge caching security and potential future directions.