inf-TESLA: Multicast Delayed Authentication for Streaming Sensor Data in Electric Power Systems

Multicast authentication of synchrophasor data is challenging due to the design requirements of Smart Grid monitoring systems such as low security overhead, tolerance of lossy networks, time-criticality and high data rates. In this work, we propose inf-TESLA, Infinite Timed Efficient Stream Loss-tolerant Authentication, a multicast delayed authentication protocol for communication links used to stream synchrophasor data for wide area control of electric power networks. Our approach is based on the authentication protocol TESLA but is augmented to accommodate high frequency transmissions of unbounded length. inf-TESLA protocol utilizes the Dual Offset Key Chains mechanism to reduce authentication delay and computational cost associated with key chain commitment. We provide a description of the mechanism using two different modes for disclosing keys and demonstrate its security against a man-in-the-middle attack attempt. We compare our approach against the TESLA protocol in a 2-day simulation scenario, showing a reduction of 15.82 % and 47.29 % in computational cost, sender and receiver respectively, and a cumulative reduction in the communication overhead.