Securing home networks

  • FIIPS@Home is a research project on improving the security of home networks through a collaborative early-warning, information, intrusion prevention system.

Motivation

Home networks have become an attractive target for attacks. A contributing factor is the trend towards smart home and the use of IoT devices in such networks. If such devices are infiltrated, they could, for example, be used to eavesdrop on users or made to execute actions not desired by users. They could even be the origin of subsequent attacks on other networks, e. g. if they are made part of a botnet. IoT devices are often not protected well: They may have been developed in a cost-effective manner and are typically designed to be easy to integrate into the network by plug-and-play, without the appropriate attention being given to security. The increasing popularity of work-from-home policies means that insecure devices in home networks pose an increasingly severe threat even for large organisations.

Project goals

The aim of our project is to improve users’ self-determination and confidence in their use of digital technologies, applications and systems in their home network. To this end, we aim to develop an easily accessible and free mobile app, which provides users with an overview of the devices in their home network and performs simple vulnerability scans. An active sensor component for use on inexpensive USB compute sticks will be able to determine device fingerprints and continuously detect attacks on the protected home network. Finally, an active middlebox will be developed, which can break connections and isolate parts of the network in the event of an attack.

Funding

FIIPS@Home is funded by the German Federal Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR) within the framework of the Research Network Anonymisation. The project has a volume of 2.28 million euros. The BMFTR provides 96% of the funding. The project started on December 15th, 2022 and will run for three years.

Project Participants

Latest News

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Paper accepted at ARES'25

on July 2, 2025

We are thrilled to announce that our paper, “C2 Beaconing Detection via AI-based Time-Series Analysis”, has been accepted for publication at the 20th International Conference on Availability, Reliability and Security (ARES'25), to be held in Ghent, Belgium, from August 11-14, 2025.

In this paper, we present a comprehensive study on detecting Command and Control (C2) beaconing, a critical early warning mechanism for identifying malicious communication channels in cybersecurity. Undetected C2 beaconing can enable persistent access to infected devices, compromising critical infrastructure and posing significant risks. To tackle this challenge, we explore AI-based solutions, including:

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Save the date: AnoSiDat 2025 Congress on Anonymisation for Secure Data Use

on June 20, 2025

On 28 and 29 October, the AnoSiDat congress of the federally funded research network on anonymisation will take place at the AXICA congress centre in Berlin. The event offers you the opportunity to get to know the clusters and projects that are part of the research network, including FIIPS@Home, gain insights about their practical applications and join discussions with experts from science, industry and politis. You can look forward to exciting presentations, interactive workshops and stimulating discussions.

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ELSI Workshop at Goethe University Frankfurt

on June 13, 2025

On June 12th, 2025, the project’s ELSI workshop took place at Goethe University Frankfurt to analyse the ethical, legal and social implications of the project. In addition to the project participants, four invited speakers as well as additional guests joined the workshop.

After an initial presentation about the project and its approach towards enhancing the security of smart home systems, Prof. Dr. Ralf Kneuper (IU Internationale Hochschule) gave an impulse talk about privacy challenges in smart home systems. Prof. Mag. DDr. Erich Schweighofer (University of Vienna) presented a legal and ethical framework for hardware and software development and co-operation with providers. Dr. Aaron J. Butler (Helmut Schmidt University) presented his approach for establishing ethics in autonomous intelligent systems. Dr. Jacques Ophoff (Abertay University) presented valuable insights regarding consumer privacy concerns and personal IoT device adoption. In two interactive world café sessions, the workshop parcipants discussed legal, ethical and social requirements for the FIIPS ecosystem that will contribute to the further devlopment of the FIIPS app, stick and box.

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Paper accepted at WISE

on May 15, 2024

Our paper “An In-Depth Analysis of Security and Privacy Concerns in Smart Home IoT Devices Through Expert User Interviews” by Sascha Löbner, Frédéric Tronnier, László Miller and Jens Lindemann has been accepted for publication at the 2024 World Conference on Information Security Education (WISE 2024), which will take place in Edinburgh from June 12th to 14th. In this paper, we survey smart home usage behavior and user knowledge to identify the need for solutions that educate users on potential threats, and aid them in securing their smart home.

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