Efficient RFID authentication protocols based on pseudorandom sequence generators

Abstract

In this paper, we introduce a new class of PRSGs, called partitioned pseudorandom sequence generators(PPRSGs), and propose an RFID authentication protocol using a PPRSG, called S-protocol. Since most existing stream ciphers can be regarded as secure PPRSGs, and stream ciphers outperform other types of symmetric key primitives such as block ciphers and hash functions in terms of power, performance and gate size, S-protocol is expected to be suitable for use in highly constrained environments such as RFID systems. We present a formal proof that guarantees resistance of S-protocol to desynchronization and tag-impersonation attacks. Specifically, we reduce the availability of S-protocol to pseudorandomness of the underlying PPRSG, and the security of the protocol to the availability. Finally, we give a modification of S-protocol, called S*-protocol, that provides mutual authentication of tag and reader.