Author(s): Lucas M Verhoeven, Sophie L Kramer and Daan R Hofstra

Abstract: The rapid proliferation of Internet of Things (IoT) devices has transformed modern communication systems by enabling continuous data exchange among resource-constrained nodes. However, the open and distributed nature of IoT environments exposes transmitted data to significant security threats, including eavesdropping, data tampering, replay attacks, and unauthorized access. Conventional cryptographic solutions, while effective in traditional networks, often impose excessive computational and energy overheads that are unsuitable for lightweight IoT devices. This research proposes a simple cryptographic model specifically designed to enhance secure data transmission in IoT systems while maintaining low complexity and minimal resource consumption. The proposed model integrates symmetric key encryption, lightweight hashing, and session-based key updates to ensure confidentiality, integrity, and basic authentication during data exchange. Emphasis is placed on reducing computational cost and memory usage without compromising essential security properties. The model is conceptually evaluated against common IoT security requirements, including scalability, energy efficiency, and resistance to common network attacks. Comparative analysis with existing lightweight cryptographic approaches suggests that the proposed framework achieves a balanced trade-off between security strength and operational efficiency. By employing simple control logic and widely accepted cryptographic primitives, the model remains practical for implementation on low-power microcontrollers commonly used in IoT devices. The results indicate that adopting simplified cryptographic architectures can significantly improve secure communication in IoT deployments, particularly in applications such as smart homes, environmental monitoring, healthcare sensors, and industrial automation. This work contributes to ongoing efforts to design efficient and practical security mechanisms for IoT networks and highlights the importance of tailoring cryptographic solutions to device-level constraints. The proposed model serves as a foundation for further experimental validation and optimization in real-world IoT environments.

DOI: 10.33545/27075923.2026.v7.i1a.124

Pages: 37-41 | Views: 75 | Downloads: 29

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