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K-core-based attack to the internet: Is it more malicious than degree-based attack?

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Abstract

K-core (k-shell) is an interesting measure that discriminates the core and fringe nodes in a complex network. Recent studies have revealed that some nodes of high k-core values may play a vital role in information diffusion. As a result, one may expect that attacking the nodes of high k-core values preferentially will collapse the Internet easily. To our surprise, however, the experiments on two Internet AS-level topologies show that: Although a k-core-based attack is feasible in reality, it is actually less effective than the classic degree-based attack. Indeed, as indicated by the measure normalized susceptibility, we need to remove 2 % to 3 % more nodes in a k-core-based attack in order to collapse the networks. Further investigation on the nodes in a same shell discloses that these nodes often have drastically varying degrees, among which are the nodes of high k-core values but low degrees. These nodes cannot lead to sufficient link deletions in the early stage of a k-core-based attack, and therefore make it less malicious than a degree-based attack. Finally, a strategy called “ELL” is employed for the Internet enhancement. Experiments demonstrate that “ELL” can greatly improve the Internet robustness at very small costs.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Software Development Environment, Beihang University, Beijing, China

    Jichang Zhao, Mingming Chen, Zhiwen Fang & Ke Xu

  2. Beijing Key Laboratory of Emergency Support Simulation Technologies for City Operations, School of Economics and Management, Beihang University, Beijing, China

    Junjie Wu

  3. National Computer Network Emergency Response Technical Team/Coordination Center of China, Beijing, China

    Xu Zhang

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  1. Jichang Zhao
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  2. Junjie Wu
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  3. Mingming Chen
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  4. Zhiwen Fang
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  5. Xu Zhang
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  6. Ke Xu
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Correspondence to Xu Zhang or Ke Xu.

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Zhao, J., Wu, J., Chen, M. et al. K-core-based attack to the internet: Is it more malicious than degree-based attack?. World Wide Web 18, 749–766 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11280-014-0275-3

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