A Lightweight Key Agreement Protocol for V2X Communications Based on Kyber and Saber

Area of Science:

• Cybersecurity
• Applied Cryptography
• Vehicular Networks

Background:

• Vehicular networks (V2X) require robust security against evolving threats.
• The advent of quantum computing necessitates quantum-resistant cryptographic solutions.
• Existing protocols often struggle with the computational and resource constraints of embedded vehicular systems.

Purpose of the Study:

• To propose a post-quantum secure key agreement protocol for V2X communication.
• To address the challenges of quantum resistance and lightweight deployment in vehicular networks.
• To enhance cryptographic redundancy and ensure robustness against quantum attacks.

Main Methods:

• A hybrid scheme integrating two lattice-based Key Encapsulation Mechanisms (KEMs): Kyber and Saber.
• A dual-path handshake framework utilizing RSU public-key broadcasting and OBU dual-path encapsulation.
• Algorithm-level optimizations including Number Theoretic Transform (NTT) acceleration and AVX2-based parallelism.

Main Results:

• The proposed protocol reduces handshake latency by nearly 60% compared to RSA.
• Achieves delay performance comparable to Elliptic Curve Diffie-Hellman (ECDH).
• Lowers total resource consumption by approximately 40%.

Conclusions:

• The Kyber + Saber hybrid protocol offers a practical, scalable, and quantum-resistant solution for V2X.
• It is well-suited for dynamic, resource-constrained, and latency-sensitive vehicular environments.
• Provides enhanced security for future connected vehicle communications.