AmbSentry: Mitigating Sensing Eavesdropping in ISAC Systems by Harnessing Ambient IoT Devices

• URL: http://arxiv.org/abs/2608.11799v1
• Date: Wed, 12 Aug 2026 08:42:05 GMT
• Title: AmbSentry: Mitigating Sensing Eavesdropping in ISAC Systems by Harnessing Ambient IoT Devices
• Abstract summary: Integrated sensing and communication (ISAC) has emerged as a pivotal paradigm for 6G networks.<n>This paper proposes AmbSentry, an ISAC system that prevents the leakage of sensing information to sensing eavesdroppers.
• Score: 60.083979780396014
• License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
• Abstract: Integrated sensing and communication (ISAC) has emerged as a pivotal paradigm for 6G networks, enabling the synergistic convergence of spectral and hardware resources to maximize system efficiency. However, the inherent openness of wireless transmission exposes ISAC systems to critical security risks, particularly regarding the privacy of the sensing information. Unauthorized sensing eavesdroppers can extract sensitive target parameters (e.g., range and velocity) by directly estimating open sensing echo channels, rendering traditional data-based protection techniques ineffective. To mitigate this threat, this paper proposes AmbSentry, an ISAC system that prevents the leakage of sensing information to sensing eavesdroppers by harnessing naturally distributed passive ambient IoT (AIoT) devices. Specifically, these AIoT devices are strategically configured to act as cooperative jammers and ghost targets, introducing controllable interference into the sensing environment. Based on the proposed system, we formulate a joint optimization problem to maximize the integrated sidelobe level at the eavesdropper under quality-of-service (QoS) constraints, thereby degrading sensing eavesdropping performance while maintaining sensing and communication performance for legitimate receivers. Since the problem is non-convex, we further develop an efficient iterative algorithm to cooperatively design the transmit beamforming at the base station and the reflection modulations of the AIoT devices based on Dinkelbach transformation and block coordinate descent methods. The detailed results also demonstrate that AmbSentry significantly enhances sensing security, allowing the legitimate sensing receiver to achieve a 14-dB SNR advantage in detection probability and a hundred times lower estimation error compared to the eavesdropper.

Related papers

• Communication Security and Sensing Privacy in FMCW-Based ISAC Through Signal Modulation [40.777558114712]
  This study proposes a novel radar-centric signaling design and architecture for secure integrated sensing and communication (ISAC) systems.<n>The proposed framework is designed to provide robust physical layer security for data transmission while simultaneously enhancing sensing privacy.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2026-05-22T09:41:54Z)
• A Novel Framework for Transmitter Privacy in Integrated Sensing and Communication [30.11438480964021]
  An unintended sensing node may exploit the shared radio waveform to infer transmitter-related information even when the communication payload remains secure.<n>This paper investigates transmitter privacy, defined as limiting unauthorized of transmitter-related information through channel estimation.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2026-04-17T13:52:18Z)
• Deep Learning-Driven Friendly Jamming for Secure Multicarrier ISAC Under Channel Uncertainty [36.06255760148067]
  Integrated sensing and communication (ISAC) systems promise efficient spectrum utilization by jointly supporting radar sensing and wireless communication.<n>This paper presents a deep learning-driven framework for enhancing physical-layer security in multicarrier ISAC systems under imperfect channel state information (CSI) and in the presence of unknown eavesdropper (Eve) locations.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2026-03-05T11:20:27Z)
• AmbShield: Enhancing Physical Layer Security with Ambient Backscatter Devices against Eavesdroppers [69.56534335936534]
  AmbShield is an AmBD-assisted PLS scheme that leverages naturally distributed AmBDs to simultaneously strengthen the legitimate channel and degrade eavesdroppers'<n>In AmbShield, AmBDs are exploited as friendly jammers that randomly backscatter to create interference at eavesdroppers, and as passive relays that backscatter the desired signal to enhance the capacity of legitimate devices.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2026-01-14T20:56:50Z)
• Multi-Agent-Driven Cognitive Secure Communications in Satellite-Terrestrial Networks [58.70163955407538]
  Malicious eavesdroppers pose a serious threat to private information via satellite-terrestrial networks (STNs)<n>We propose a cognitive secure communication framework driven by multiple agents that coordinates spectrum scheduling and protection through real-time sensing.<n>We exploit generative adversarial networks to produce adversarial matrices, and employ learning-aided power control to set real and adversarial signal powers for protection layer.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2026-01-06T10:30:41Z)
• Security-Aware Joint Sensing, Communication, and Computing Optimization in Low Altitude Wireless Networks [83.84711311344918]
  Integrated sensing, communications, and computing (I SCC) is one of the core parts of Low-Altitude Wireless Networks (LAWNs)<n>This paper studies joint performance optimization of I SCC while considering secrecyness of the communications.<n>We propose a deep Q-network (DQN)-based multi-objective evolutionary algorithm, which adaptively selects evolutionary operators according to the evolving optimization objectives.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2025-11-03T11:06:41Z)
• When UAV Swarm Meets IRS: Collaborative Secure Communications in Low-altitude Wireless Networks [68.45202147860537]
  Low-altitude wireless networks (LAWNs) provide enhanced coverage, reliability, and throughput for diverse applications.<n>These networks face significant security vulnerabilities from both known and potential unknown eavesdroppers.<n>We propose a novel secure communication framework for LAWNs where the selected UAVs within a swarm function as a virtual antenna array.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2025-10-25T02:02:14Z)
• Anti-Jamming Sensing with Distributed Reconfigurable Intelligent Metasurface Antennas [11.159180009266489]
  The sensing accuracy of traditional RF sensing methods is often affected by adverse propagation channels from the transmitter to the receiver, such as fading and noise.<n>In this paper, we propose employing distributed Reconfigurable Intelligent Meta Antennas (RIMSA) to detect the presence and location of objects.<n>We introduce a deep reinforcement learning (DRL) algorithm aimed at calculating the optimal beamforming patterns and a neural network aimed at converting received signals into sensing outcomes.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2025-08-07T01:33:38Z)
• Joint Sensing, Communication, and AI: A Trifecta for Resilient THz User Experiences [118.91584633024907]
  A novel joint sensing, communication, and artificial intelligence (AI) framework is proposed so as to optimize extended reality (XR) experiences over terahertz (THz) wireless systems.
  arXiv  Detail & Related papers  (2023-04-29T00:39:50Z)

This list is automatically generated from the titles and abstracts of the papers in this site.

This site does not guarantee the quality of this site (including all information) and is not responsible for any consequences.