A A Lightweight Hybrid Encryption Algorithm for Internet of Things Security using ASCON and AES with Chaotic System
Main Article Content
Abstract
The recent rise in the use of Internet of Things (IoT) devices has further increased the pressure on cryptographic solutions that will meet the challenge of high-security standards, yet nearly meet the extreme resource requirements imposed by embedded computers by nature. The paper introduces a new hybrid encryption architecture that is aimed at meeting these conflicting requirements of the IoT setting. The scheme suggested is a variant of AES-r cipher combined with the ASCON authenticated-encryption primitive giving the AESASCON algorithm, and extended with integrity verification by the SHA3-256 hash to create the AESASCONH construction. Stochastic key material is calculated using a four-dimensional NoseSprott-Jerk-Rossler (4D-NSJR) chaotic system, which is highly sensitive to initial conditions causing the effective key space to become large and making brute-force enumeration challenging. The architecture is segmented into three layers that collaborate with one another and they are chaotic key generation, symmetric data encryption and authenticated-integrity verification. General testing against the complete NIST SP 800-22 statistical test is done that indicates that all the 15 randomness tests have been passed. Experiments with Five data sizes are used in experiments to demonstrate speedups ranging from 42% for large data payloads (1.5 MB) to 175% for small data sizes compared to AES. This demonstrates that the suggested approach provides efficient and secure protection for IoT. and entropy values of data of up to about the theoretical maximum of 8.0 bits per symbol, and thus confirm speed improvements as well as cryptographic strength is available to support high-assurance IoT deployments.
Article Details
Section
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
How to Cite
References
[1] Kumar, A., Sharma, S., Singh, A., Alwadain, A., Choi, B.-J., Manuel-Brenosa, J., Ortega-Mansilla, A., and Goyal, N. "Revolutionary strategies analysis and proposed system for future infrastructure in Internet of Things." Sustainability 14, no. 1 (2022): 71. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14010071
[2] Kumar, S., Tiwari, P., and Zymbler, M. "Internet of Things is a revolutionary approach for future technology enhancement: a review." Journal of Big Data 6 (2019): 111. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40537-019-0268-2
[3] Najm, H., Hassan, R., and Hoomod, H. K. "Data authentication for Web of Things (WoT) by using modified Secure Hash Algorithm-3 (SHA-3) and Salsa20 algorithm." Turkish Journal of Computer and Mathematics Education 12, no. 10 (2021): 2541–2551.
[4] Anyanwu, A., Olorunsogo, T., Abraham, T. O., Akindote, O. J., and Reis, O. "Data confidentiality and integrity: a review of accounting and cybersecurity controls in superannuation organizations." Computer Science and IT Research Journal 5, no. 1 (2024): 237–253.
[5] Rashid, A. A., and Hussein, K. A. "Image encryption algorithm based on the density and 6D logistic map." International Journal of Electrical and Computer Engineering 13, no. 2 (2023): 1903–1913. https://doi.org/10.11591/ijece.v13i2
[6] Taha, M. D. E., and Hussein, K. A. "An image encryption method using six-dimensional hyper chaotic system and RC6." Mustansiriyah Journal of Pure and Applied Sciences 3, no. 1 (2025): 1–11. DOI: 10.47831/mjpas.v3i1.75
[7] Albarrak, K. M. "Securing the future of web-enabled IoT: a critical analysis of Web of Things security." Applied Sciences 14, no. 23 (2024). https://doi.org/10.3390/app142310867
[8] Habib, M. A., Ahmad, M., Jabbar, S., Ahmed, S. H., and Rodrigues, J. J. P. C. "Speeding up the Internet of Things—LEAIoT: a lightweight encryption algorithm toward low-latency communication for the Internet of Things." IEEE Consumer Electronics Magazine 7, no. 6 (2018): 31–37. DOI: 10.1109/MCE.2018.2851722
[9] Dobraunig, C., Eichlseder, M., Mendel, F., and Schläffer, M. "Ascon v1.2: lightweight authenticated encryption and hashing." Journal of Cryptology 34 (2021): 1–42. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00145-021-09398-9
[10] Hoomod, H. K., Naif, J. R., and Ahmed, I. S. "A new intelligent hybrid encryption algorithm for IoT data based on modified PRESENT-SPECK and novel 5D chaotic system." Periodicals of Engineering and Natural Sciences 8, no. 4 (2020): 2333–2345.
[11] Hoomod, H. K., Naif, J. R., and Ahmed, I. S. "A hybrid cryptography algorithm for WoT based on GOST and SPECK." International Journal of Advances in Engineering and Management 3, no. 8 (2021): 1762–1769.
[12] Somaiya, R., Gonsai, A., and Tanna, R. "Implementation and evaluation of EMAES—a hybrid encryption algorithm for sharing multimedia files with more security and speed." International Journal of Electrical and Computer Engineering Systems 14, no. 4 (2023): 401–409. https://doi.org/10.32985/ijeces.14.4.4
[13] Basapur, S. B., and Shylaja, B. S. "A hybrid cryptographic model using AES and RSA for sensitive data privacy preserving." Webology (2021): 129–148. DOI: 10.14704/WEB/V18SI05/WEB18219
[14] Jasim, S. H., Hoomod, H. K., and Hussein, K. A. "Color image encryption based on hybrid algorithm symmetric using two-dimensional chaotic system." AIP Conference Proceedings 3264, no. 1 (2025): 030005. https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0258858
[15] Cagua, G., Gauthier-Umaña, V., and Lozano-Garzón, C. "Implementation and performance of lightweight authentication encryption ASCON on IoT devices." IEEE Access (2025). https://doi.org/10.1109/ACCESS.2025.3529757
[16] Ismael, S. K., Shujaa, M. I., and Alwahhab, A. B. A. "Secure and lightweight cipher for resource-constrained IoT healthcare applications using snake key generation." Al-Khwarizmi Engineering Journal 21, no. 1 (2025): 35–48. https://doi.org/10.22153/kej.2025.09.002
[17] Bhuvaneshwari, A. J., and Kaythry, P. "Secure IoV communications for smart fleet systems empowered with ASCON." Scientific Reports 15, no. 1 (2025): 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-04061-w
[18] Pandey, S., and Bhushan, B. "Recent lightweight cryptography (LWC) based security advances for resource-constrained IoT networks." Wireless Networks 30, no. 4 (2024): 2987–3026. DOI: 10.1007/s11276-024-03714-4
[19] Cetintav, I., and Sandikkaya, M. T. "A review of lightweight IoT authentication protocols from the perspective of security requirements, computation, communication, and hardware costs." IEEE Access (2025). DOI: 10.1109/ACCESS.2025.3546147
[20] Abikoye, O. C., Haruna, A. D., Abubakar, A., Akande, N. O., and Asani, E. O. "Modified advanced encryption standard algorithm for information security." Symmetry 11, no. 12 (2019): 1484. DOI: 10.3390/sym11121484
[21] Dobraunig, C., Eichlseder, M., Mendel, F., and Schläffer, M. "Ascon v1.2: lightweight authenticated encryption and hashing." Journal of Cryptology 34 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00145-021-09398-9
[22] Rana, M., Mamun, Q., and Islam, R. "Balancing security and efficiency: a power consumption analysis of a lightweight block cipher." Electronics 13, no. 21 (2024): 4325. https://doi.org/10.3390/electronics13214325
[23] Zhang, Q. "An overview and analysis of hybrid encryption: the combination of symmetric encryption and asymmetric encryption." In Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Computing and Data Science (CDS), pp. 616–622. IEEE, 2021. DOI: 10.1109/CDS52072.2021.00111
[24] Pandey, K., and Sharma, D. "Novel image encryption algorithm utilizing hybrid chaotic maps and elliptic curve cryptography with genetic algorithm." Journal of Information Security and Applications 89 (2025): 103995. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jisa.2025.103995
[25] Sudheesh, K. V., Santhosha, S. B., Puttegowda, K., Ravi, V., and Al Mazroa, A. "A high-security chaotic encryption model for biomedical image protection." Security and Privacy 8, no. 2 (2025): e503. https://doi.org/10.1002/spy2.503
[26] Zhang, W., Yu, N., Ji, X., Lu, B., Hui, X., Wang, X., and Xi, S. "Multi-key hybrid encryption optical codebook based on five-dimensional Hamiltonian conservative chaotic system." Optics Express 33, no. 9 (2025): 18611–18623. https://doi.org/10.1364/OE.554307
[27] Nguyen, H. P., and Chen, Y. "Lightweight, post-quantum secure cryptography based on ASCON: hardware implementation in automotive applications." Electronics 13, no. 22 (2024): 4550. https://doi.org/10.3390/electronics13224550
[28] Wurity, A., and Sumalatha, L. "ASCON: a new era in lightweight cryptography." In Advances in Cyber Security and Digital Forensics, e-ISBN: 978-93-6252-987-9 (2024).
[29] Naser, N. M., and Naif, J. R. "New ultra-lightweight IoT encryption algorithm using novel chaotic system." International Journal of Technical and Physical Problems of Engineering 14, no. 4 (2022): 253–259.