How to Implement Network Security Awareness in ns3

To implement the network security awareness in ns3 has includes to generate the simulation where the nodes are responsive to the possible security attacks and take the proactive measures to identify and prevent them. This has embrace the security training for nodes then monitor the mistrustful activities, logging events, and adapting to detected threats. The below is the detailed guide to execute the network security awareness in the ns3 tool:

Step-by-Step Implementation:

Step 1: Set Up ns3 Environment

1. Install ns3: Download and install ns3 in the system.
2. Familiarize yourself with ns3: Read through the ns3 tutorial to get knowledge about the simple concepts and structure of ns3 simulations.

Step 2: Define the Network Topology

1. Create a Secure Network Topology: To describe the network topology that contains the security-aware nodes, firewalls, and IDS nodes and it embrace to creating multiple nodes, setting up channels, and configuring IP addresses. We’ll use a simple topology with a client, server, firewall, and IDS.

Step 3: Implement Security Awareness Mechanisms

To implement network security awareness, we can use the following strategies:

1. Training and Awareness: Nodes are pre-configured with security policies and rules.
2. Monitoring: Nodes continuously monitor traffic for suspicious activities.
3. Logging: Nodes log significant events for analysis and reporting.
4. Adaptation: Nodes adapt their behaviour based on detected threats.

The below are the sample procedures on how to execute the simple network security awareness setup:

C++ Code for ns3 Simulation (main.cc)

#include “ns3/core-module.h”

#include “ns3/network-module.h”

#include “ns3/internet-module.h”

#include “ns3/point-to-point-module.h”

#include “ns3/applications-module.h”

#include <iostream>

#include <fstream>

using namespace ns3;

void LogPacket(const std::string &message)

{

std::ofstream logFile;

logFile.open(“log.txt”, std::ios_base::app);

logFile << Simulator::Now().GetSeconds() << “: ” << message << std::endl;

logFile.close();

}

// Security-aware node application

class SecurityAwareApp : public Application

{

public:

SecurityAwareApp() : m_packetsReceived(0) {}

virtual ~SecurityAwareApp() {}

void Setup(Address address, uint16_t port)

{

m_peerAddress = address;

m_peerPort = port;

}

private:

virtual void StartApplication()

{

m_socket = Socket::CreateSocket(GetNode(), TypeId::LookupByName(“ns3::UdpSocketFactory”));

m_socket->Bind();

m_socket->Connect(InetSocketAddress(m_peerAddress, m_peerPort));

 

// Set up the receive callback

m_socket->SetRecvCallback(MakeCallback(&SecurityAwareApp::ReceivePacket, this));

// Schedule the first security awareness check

Simulator::Schedule(Seconds(5.0), &SecurityAwareApp::CheckSecurityAwareness, this);

}

virtual void StopApplication()

{

if (m_socket)

{

m_socket->Close();

m_socket = 0;

}

}

void SendPacket()

{

std::string message = “Normal traffic”;

Ptr<Packet> packet = Create<Packet>((uint8_t *)message.c_str(), message.size());

m_socket->Send(packet);

// Schedule the next packet transmission

Simulator::Schedule(Seconds(5.0), &SecurityAwareApp::SendPacket, this);

}

void ReceivePacket(Ptr<Socket> socket)

{

Ptr<Packet> packet = socket->Recv();

m_packetsReceived++;

// Monitor packet for suspicious activity

uint8_t buffer[1024];

packet->CopyData(buffer, packet->GetSize());

std::string receivedMessage((char *)buffer, packet->GetSize());

if (receivedMessage.find(“suspicious”) != std::string::npos)

{

std::cout << “Suspicious packet detected: ” << receivedMessage << std::endl;

LogPacket(“Suspicious packet detected: ” + receivedMessage);

AdaptToThreat(receivedMessage);

}

else

{

std::cout << “Normal packet received: ” << receivedMessage << std::endl;

LogPacket(“Normal packet received: ” + receivedMessage);

}

}

void CheckSecurityAwareness()

{

// Simulate a security awareness check

std::cout << “Performing security awareness check at ” << Simulator::Now().GetSeconds() << ” seconds.” << std::endl;

LogPacket(“Performing security awareness check.”);

// Schedule the next security awareness check

Simulator::Schedule(Seconds(5.0), &SecurityAwareApp::CheckSecurityAwareness, this);

}

void AdaptToThreat(const std::string &threat)

{

// Example adaptation: send alert and drop subsequent suspicious packets

std::cout << “Adapting to detected threat: ” << threat << std::endl;

LogPacket(“Adapting to detected threat: ” + threat);

}

Ptr<Socket> m_socket;

Address m_peerAddress;

uint16_t m_peerPort;

uint32_t m_packetsReceived;

};

int main(int argc, char *argv[])

{

NodeContainer nodes;

nodes.Create(4); // Example: 4 nodes (1 client, 1 server, 1 firewall, 1 IDS)

PointToPointHelper pointToPoint;

pointToPoint.SetDeviceAttribute(“DataRate”, StringValue(“1Gbps”));

pointToPoint.SetChannelAttribute(“Delay”, StringValue(“2ms”));

NetDeviceContainer devices1 = pointToPoint.Install(nodes.Get(0), nodes.Get(2)); // Client to Firewall

NetDeviceContainer devices2 = pointToPoint.Install(nodes.Get(2), nodes.Get(3)); // Firewall to IDS

NetDeviceContainer devices3 = pointToPoint.Install(nodes.Get(3), nodes.Get(1)); // IDS to Server

InternetStackHelper stack;

stack.Install(nodes);

Ipv4AddressHelper address;

address.SetBase(“10.1.1.0”, “255.255.255.0”);

Ipv4InterfaceContainer interfaces1 = address.Assign(devices1);

address.SetBase(“10.1.2.0”, “255.255.255.0”);

Ipv4InterfaceContainer interfaces2 = address.Assign(devices2);

address.SetBase(“10.1.3.0”, “255.255.255.0”);

Ipv4InterfaceContainer interfaces3 = address.Assign(devices3);

Ipv4GlobalRoutingHelper::PopulateRoutingTables();

uint16_t port = 9;

Ptr<SecurityAwareApp> clientApp = CreateObject<SecurityAwareApp>();

clientApp->Setup(InetSocketAddress(interfaces1.GetAddress(1), port), port);

nodes.Get(0)->AddApplication(clientApp);

clientApp->SetStartTime(Seconds(2.0));

clientApp->SetStopTime(Seconds(60.0));

Ptr<SecurityAwareApp> serverApp = CreateObject<SecurityAwareApp>();

serverApp->Setup(InetSocketAddress(Ipv4Address::GetAny(), port), port);

nodes.Get(1)->AddApplication(serverApp);

serverApp->SetStartTime(Seconds(1.0));

serverApp->SetStopTime(Seconds(60.0));

Ptr<SecurityAwareApp> firewallApp = CreateObject<SecurityAwareApp>();

firewallApp->Setup(InetSocketAddress(interfaces2.GetAddress(1), port), port);

nodes.Get(2)->AddApplication(firewallApp);

firewallApp->SetStartTime(Seconds(1.0));

firewallApp->SetStopTime(Seconds(60.0));

Ptr<SecurityAwareApp> idsApp = CreateObject<SecurityAwareApp>();

idsApp->Setup(InetSocketAddress(interfaces3.GetAddress(1), port), port);

nodes.Get(3)->AddApplication(idsApp);

idsApp->SetStartTime(Seconds(1.0));

idsApp->SetStopTime(Seconds(60.0));

Simulator::Run();

Simulator::Destroy();

return 0;

}

Explanation

1. Network Topology:
   • The network consists of 4 nodes: a client, a server, a firewall, and an IDS.
   • The client connects to the firewall, which forwards packets through the IDS to the server.
2. Logging Function:
   • LogPacket function logs packet information to a file for analysis.
3. SecurityAwareApp Class:
   • This application monitors traffic for suspicious activities and adapts to detected threats.
   • Setup method initializes the application with the peer address and port.
   • StartApplication method sets up the socket connection, receive callback, and schedules security awareness checks.
   • SendPacket method sends a message to the peer node.
   • ReceivePacket method receives and analyzes packets.
   • CheckSecurityAwareness method simulates periodic security awareness checks.
   • AdaptToThreat method adapts to detected threats by logging the threat and taking predefined actions.
4. Main Function:
   • Creates a network with 4 nodes interconnected with point-to-point links.
   • Sets up IP addresses for the nodes.
   • Initializes the SecurityAwareApp applications on the client, server, firewall, and IDS nodes.
   • The client sends normal traffic, the firewall and IDS monitor for suspicious activities, and the server receives messages.

Compile and Run

1. Compile the Code: Compile the ns3 simulation code using the following command:

g++ -std=c++11 -o ns3-network-security-awareness main.cc `pkg-config –cflags –libs ns3-dev`

1. Run the Simulation: Execute the compiled program:

./ns3-network-security-awareness

In this setup we will show how to execute the basic network security awareness in ns3 and then we need to expand it further to include more sophisticated monitoring, additional security mechanisms, and more complex network topologies as needed. We will plan to give more insights about the network security awareness. If you need more help with implementing network security awareness in the ns3 program, feel free to reach out to us. We have a lot of project ideas in this area, so share your details with us for additional support. We’re excited about our innovative projects focused on security training for nodes, monitoring suspicious activities, logging events, and adjusting to any threats we find