CLEFIA-based Lightweight Encryption for Resource-Constrained Systems: Design, Algorithms and Security Analysis

Emerging classes of distributed and embedded systems increasingly require cryptographic mechanisms that provide confidentiality, integrity, and authenticity while operating under strict limitations on computation, energy consumption, memory capacity, and communication bandwidth. Conventional symmetric and asymmetric cryptographic algorithms often fail to meet these stringent requirements. Lightweight cryptography (LWC) offers a promising solution by enabling secure real-time data transmission, command authentication, telemetry encryption, and protection of sensitive information in embedded systems. This paper presents a multicriteria analysis of widely adopted LWC algorithms, identifying the CLEFIA block cipher standardized in ISO/IEC 29192-2 as a balanced choice between security and performance. An enhanced LWC method based on the mentioned cipher is proposed, aiming to improve encryption throughput without compromising cryptographic robustness. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed method achieves an encryption speedup over the baseline CLEFIA implementation. Furthermore, the improved algorithm successfully passes statistical randomness tests and shows increased resistance to linear and differential cryptanalysis. Notably, the cipher begins to exhibit random substitution characteristics from the third round, reinforcing its suitability for secure deployment in resource-limited environments. The results obtained in this study will be valuable for ensuring confidentiality, integrity, and authenticity in low-power and resource-constrained systems, as well as in modern information platforms where low latency is critical.