Trusted source routing protocols for wireless mesh networks using attestation method

An apparatus comprising:

• an interface to communicate with wireless mesh routers configured to implement a source routing protocol in which the mesh routers propagate route request packets broadcasted by a source node to a destination node, the mesh routers configured to process the route request packets by adding their addresses to accumulated paths in the route request packets, and by adding trust indicators to the accumulated paths to indicate whether mesh routers among the mesh routers from previous hops along the accumulated path are trusted or compromised mesh routers;
• and
• a processor of the destination node, the processor coupled to the interface and configured to perform:
• receiving from the mesh routers the route request packets, which convey the accumulated paths;
• determining trusted paths among the accumulated paths for which all of the mesh routers along the accumulated paths are trusted based on the trust indicators for the accumulated paths;
• determining a preferred path among the trusted paths;
• and
• forwarding an indication of the preferred path to the source node via the mesh routers.

A non-transitory computer readable medium encoded with instructions that, when executed by a processor of a destination node connected to wireless mesh routers configured to implement a source routing protocol in which the mesh routers propagate route request packets broadcasted by a source node to the destination node, the mesh routers configured to process the route request packets by adding their addresses to accumulated paths in the route request packets, and by adding trust indicators to the accumulated paths to indicate whether mesh routers among the mesh routers from previous hops along the accumulated path are trusted or compromised mesh routers, cause the processor to perform:

• receiving from the mesh routers the route request packets, which convey the accumulated paths;
• determining trusted paths among the accumulated paths for which all of the mesh routers along the accumulated paths are trusted based on the trust indicators for the accumulated paths;
• determining a preferred path among the trusted paths;
• and
• forwarding an indication of the preferred path to the source node via the mesh routers.