Towards a trust management for VANETs

Abstract

Information transmitted over a vehicular network may be sensitive and affect important safety decisions. Exchanging information must be based on trust; however, an issue that arises is the degree to which drivers can trust the received information from other (previously unknown) drivers. Thus, trust management is a fundamental and critical issue in vehicular ad-hoc networks (VANETs). However, studies and research have yet to thoroughly address this important problem. In this paper, we offer some discussion on the topic and propose a possible way of building an effective trust management system. Finally, we also present a discussion on the topics of privacy and reputation in VANETs.