BCNBI: A Blockchain-Based Security Framework for Northbound Interface in Software-Defined Networking

Abstract

Software-defined networking (SDN) has emerged as a flexible and programmable network architecture that takes advantage of the benefits of global visibility and centralized control over a network. One of the main properties of the SDN architecture is the ability to offer a northbound interface (NBI), which enables network applications to access the SDN controller resources. However, the NBI can be compromised by a malicious application due to the lack of standardization and security aspects in the most current NBI designs. Therefore, in this paper, we propose a novel comprehensive security solution for securing the application–controller interface, named BCNBI. We propose a controller-independent lightweight blockchain architecture and exploit the security features of blockchain while limiting the blockchain’s computational overhead. BCNBI automatically verifies application and SDN controller credentials through token-based authentication. The proposed solution enforces fine-grained access control for each application’s API request and classifies the permission set into strict and normal policies, in order to add an extra level of security. In addition, the trustworthiness of applications is evaluated in order to prevent malicious activities. We implemented our blockchain-based solution to analyze its security, based on the confidentiality–integrity–availability model criteria, and evaluated the introduced overhead in terms of processing time and packet overhead. The experimental results demonstrate that the BCNBI can effectively secure the NBI, based on the fundamental security goals, while introducing insignificant overhead.