Networking, wireless

This project establishes a multimedia-based virtual classroom with a virtual lab teaching assistant for the education of cyber physical system (CPS) security. Such a virtual classroom helps college students in resource-limited rural areas to learn the latest CPS security knowledge via an on-line peer-to-peer learning environment with other students from larger schools.

Software Defined Radio (SDR) technology has the flexibility of implementing a large part of physical layer functions in software. It is one of the major technologies that will provide broadband services to millions of US residences. However, unlike conventional radio whose RF signals are tightly regulated by FCC-certified hardware, the software components of SDR can be easily exploited by hackers to create a wide range of unauthorized waveforms to launch attacks on many security-critical wireless systems.

Wireless cellular networks serve as an essential cyber-infrastructure for mobile users. Unlike the Internet, cellular networks have adopted usage-based charging, rather than the simpler flat-rate charging. Data-plan subscribers have to pay their data bills based on the consumed traffic volume in 3G/4G networks. Although this metered charging system has been operational and generally successful for years, the security study of such a system remains largely unaddressed.

Heavy vehicles, such as trucks and buses, are part of the US critical infrastructure and carry out a significant portion of commercial and private business operations. Little effort has been invested in cyber security for these assets. If an adversary gains access to the vehicle's Controller Area Network (CAN), attacks can be launched that can affect critical vehicle electronic components. Traditionally, physical access to a heavy vehicle was required to access the CAN.

Increasingly medical devices are dependent on software and the wireless channel for their operations, which also pose new vulnerabilities to their safe, dependable, and trustworthy operations. Medical devices such as implantable insulin pumps, which are in wide use today, continuously monitor and manage a patient's diabetes without the need for frequent daily patient interventions. These devices, not originally designed against cyber security threats, must now mitigate these threats.