An Efficient and Secure Itinerary-Based Data Aggregation Algorithm for WSNs

The existing privacy-preserving data aggregation methods in wireless sensor networks (WSNs) generally rely on a network infrastructure, and data privacy is achieved by encryption techniques. However, such an infrastructure is very susceptible to the dynamic network topologies, and excessive encryption process causes a high energy consumption and re-duces the accuracy of the aggregation results. In this paper, we propose a secure and concentric-circle itinerary-based data aggregation algorithm (called SCIDA for short). With the help of a well-designed itinerary for aggregation propagation and data aggregation, SCIDA is not susceptible to network topology structure and thus suitable for wireless sensor net-works with dynamic network topologies and can save energy for network infrastructure maintenance. In addition, SCIDA uses a secure channel to ensure data privacy and avoids dramatic energy consumption caused by heavy encryption operations. SCIDA does not need to carry out encryption during data aggregation, which significantly reduces energy consumption, and prolongs the lifetime of the network. Theoretical analysis and experimental results show that SCIDA enjoys low communication overhead and energy con-sumption, yet high safety and accuracy.