Establishing Data Integrity in Networks of Cyber-Physical Systems

Cyber-physical systems are pervasive in today’s society with applications ranging from critical infrastructure systems such as the power grid or water distribution network to industrial control systems. It is clear that the reliability, safety and security of such systems is imperative. In this paper we propose utilizing tools borrowed from cryptography to ensure that false data injection attacks affecting the communications of cyber-physical systems are effectively and reliably detected. A practical example is presented to both motivate and validate the developed tools.