A Spatial-temporal Model for the Malware Propagation in MWSNs Based on the Reaction-Diffusion Equations

Abstract

Mobile wireless sensor networks (MWSNs) have important applications in many fields. However, MWSNs are becoming attacked targets due to its large-scale applications. The focus of this work is to develop a modeling framework and mathematical model for characterizing the process of malware propagation in MWSNs from two aspects of time and space. It is important to understand malware’s potential damages, and to develop counter-measures. Firstly, we develop a formal model for describing the process of malware propagation in MWSNs based on the reaction-diffusion equations. Then, we derive the threshold for predicting whether a malware propagates or not in MWSNs as time passes. Finally, we propose the spatial pattern based method to analyze and predict the spatial distribution of nodes infected by malwares as time passes. Both theoretical analysis and extensive simulation results show that the movement speed of nodes and the communication radius of nodes have a significant effect on the malware propagation in MWSNs.