Distributed Data Collection

In Mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs) mobile computer devices create a network by using wireless communication. In contrast to normal networks with a fixed infrastructure, the participants of MANETs have to work cooperatively because packets for other nodes have to be forwarded so that also distant nodes can communicate with each other. In particular internal attacks by network participants have to be considered because the physically access to the mobile devices is easy. Therefore it is important to introduce an Intrusion Detection System (IDS) that is specialized to the requirements of MANETs. One special aspect of such systems is that they have to be implemented on every node but have to work cooperatively with others. This mechanism is used and enhanced in this work. The main aspect is the distribution of reputations about other nodes. Every node is running an own local IDS that provides data for the reputation calculation that is exchanged subsequently. Therefore a node gets reputations about all other participants of the network from its neighbors. The concept of this work describes with processes and algorithms a way to exchange reputations between network participants.