Friendly-jamming schemes to secure ultra-reliable and low-latency communications in 5G and beyond communications

The security vulnerabilities are becoming the major obstacle to prevent the wide adoption of ultra-reliable and low latency communications (URLLC) in 5G and beyond communications. Current security countermeasures based on cryptographic algorithms have a stringent requirement on the centralized key management as well as computational capabilities of end devices while it may not be feasible for URLLC in 5G and beyond communications. In contrast to cryptographic approaches, friendly jamming (FJ) as a promising physical layer security method can enhance wireless communications security while it has less resource requirement on end devices and it can be applied to the full distribution environment. In order to protect wireless communications, FJ signals are introduced to degrade the decoding ability of eavesdroppers who maliciously wiretap confidential information. This article presents a state-of-the-art survey on FJ schemes to enhance network security for IoT networks with consideration of various emerging wireless technologies and different types of networks. First, we present various secrecy performance metrics and introduce the FJ method. The interference caused by FJ signals on legitimate communication is the major challenge of using FJ schemes. In order to overcome this challenge, we next introduce the integration of FJ schemes with various communication technologies, including beamforming, multiple-input multiple-output, full duplex, and relay selection. In addition, we also integrate FJ schemes with different types of communication networks. Finally, a case study of FJ schemes is illustrated and future research directions of FJ schemes have been outlined.

Automated summary

Security vulnerabilities are hindering the wide adoption of ultra-reliable and low latency communications (URLLC) in 5G and beyond, due to stringent requirements of current security countermeasures based on cryptographic algorithms. In contrast, friendly jamming (FJ) as a physical layer security method shows promise in enhancing wireless communications security with less resource demand on end devices.