Safeguarding Inter-Device Communications for Connected Systems: A Holistic Security Framework

Embedded devices are a critical part of modern interconnected systems, from industrial control systems to consumer electronics. These devices are designed to perform specific functions and are often connected to networks or other devices, enabling them to exchange data and commands. However, as these devices become more connected, they also become more vulnerable to security threats. One area of particular concern is the security of embedded communication protocols. These protocols play a critical role in enabling devices to exchange data and commands with each other, but they are also vulnerable to various attack vectors that can be exploited by attackers to gain unauthorized access, modify data, or disrupt communication. To mitigate these security risks, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has provided guidelines for securing communication protocols. These guidelines emphasize the importance of implementing secure design practices, such as using encryption, authentication, and authorization mechanisms, and limiting communication to only what is necessary. To address embedded devices' security needs and ensure information security while abstracting away the use of particular communication protocols, this paper aims to introduce a security-enhanced communication framework over standard communication protocols used in embedded devices that are deployed in many mission-critical or safety-critical domains. The work also presents an implementation of the framework over standard I2C communication protocol as a reference implementation.