Security Challenges and Attacks in Mobile Ad Hoc Networks

Mobile Ad hoc Network (MANET) is an autonomous collection of mobile nodes that form a temporary network without of any existing network infrastructure or central access point. The popularity of these networks created security challenges as an important issue. The traditional routing protocols perform well with dynamically changing topology but are not designed to defense against security challenges. In this paper we discuss about current challenges in an ad hoc environment which includes the different types of potential attacks that are possible in the Mobile Ad hoc Networks that can harm its working and operation. We have done literature study and gathered information relating to various types of attacks. In our study, we have found that there is no general algorithm that suits well against the most commonly known attacks. But the complete security solution requires the prevention, detection and reaction mechanisms applied in MANET. To develop suitable security solutions for such environments, we must first understand how MANETs can be attacked. This paper provides a comprehensive study of attacks against mobile ad hoc networks. We present a detailed classification of the attacks against MANETs.