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Proceedings of SPIE, the International Society for Optical Engineering/Proceedings of SPIE

Protection Of Multimode Optical Fiber Communication

Chung-Yee Leung, Chenghao Huang, I‐Fan Chang

Published Jan 1, 1987• 0 citations
Publisher

Abstract

One important advantage of fiberoptic communication is security. Compared with conventional electric cables, optical fiber cables are very hard to tap on information because no elctric or magnetic fields are generated from the cables. However, it is still possible to make an optical fiber to leak some of its power by peeling the jacket and bending the fiber or removing the cladding. Methods to pro-tect fiberoptic communication from tapping has been proposedl). In this paper we propose a new, simple but effective method bases on intermodal interference to protect multimode fiberoptic communication. The optical fiber detects any mechanical distortion of itself, which unavoidably occurs in an attempt to tap information. Although the lightwave carries both communication and security informations, we demonstrate that there is no degradation in communication quality.

DOI
10.1117/12.967222

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One important advantage of fiberoptic communication is security. Compared with conventional electric cables, optical fiber cables are very hard to tap on information because no elctric or magnetic fields are generated from the cables. However, it is still possible to make an optical fiber to leak some of its power by peeling the jacket and bending the fiber or removing the cladding. Methods to pro-tect fiberoptic communication from tapping has been proposedl). In this paper we propose a new, simple but effective method bases on intermodal interference to protect multimode fiberoptic communication. The optical fiber detects any mechanical distortion of itself, which unavoidably occurs in an attempt to tap information. Although the lightwave carries both communication and security informations, we demonstrate that there is no degradation in communication quality.
Optical fiber-based communications are not secure enough as it was expected. It is possible to tap information from fiber-based communication. In this paper, we introduce some known methods of invasive and non-invasive information tapping from optical fibers. We investigated the possibility of tapping information from fiber-based communication by simply amplifying leaked fields out of the fiber. We implemented two methods of analytical solution for the Helmholtz equation and the numerical finite element method to simulate the leaked field. Finally by comparing the responses of both methods, we observed that some portion of field in different modes leaks off the fiber enough to be amplified. This enables tapping of information transmitted through the fiber.
Optical fiber communication is not as secure as generally perceived. There are a number of known methods of extracting or injecting information into a fiber link, while avoiding detection. Few incidents have been reported as a successfully tapped fiber is difficult to detect. In this paper we highlight a number of known fiber tapping methods. We report simulation of optical characteristics of a fiber being tapped by `bend' method and proof of concept with physical experiment. We also presented visualized scenarios in which a resourceful eavesdropper can compromise security of a fiber link with existing technologies. Some measures to prevent fiber tapping or to nullify the significance of information tapped from fiber were also discussed.
Every year increases the amount of confidential information that is transmitted in optical communication networks. To ensure safe transmission of confidential information fiber optic lines are the most suitable. It is determined that the electromagnetic field of the light wave does not go beyond the optical fiber. However, under certain circumstances, interception of optical signal on the bend of the fibers is entirely possible. Thus, for the creation of optical lines with high level of information security are necessary additional measures. To this aim, in the proposed use of masking optical linear code by increasing the numbers of units are used passive components such as optical delay lines and optical splitters. The method allow increasing the number of units of code combinations to be transferred, and thus make it impossible for an adequate interpretation of the information. The advantage of the method is that the protection device is completely passive, and therefore reliable, and can be connected directly to the input and output of optical linear tract. Moreover, these devices do not require adjustment.
Initially considered secure against interception, fiber-optic networks were subsequently found susceptible to covert tapping, although such attacks require different coupling mechanisms and components than those used for twisted pair and coaxial cables. Fiber-optic networks carry the majority of data and voice traffic worldwide, including backhaul and fronthaul traffic in 4G and 5G radio networks, connections between data centers, and submarine cable systems. Consequently, physical access to fibers for interception has attracted the attention of intelligence agencies and industrial spies. This vulnerability is facilitated by the fact that single-mode optical fibers (SMFs) used in telecommunication networks have evolved relatively little over the last 40 years. Fibers of substantially different designs—anti-resonant hollow core fibers (HCF) and multi-core fibers (MCF)—made their commercial debut around 2023, and their susceptibility to tapping may differ substantially from that of conventional SMFs. New promising fiber monitoring techniques based on polarization measurements have also been demonstrated recently. While established tapping techniques remain feasible for conventional fibers, new fiber designs and monitoring technologies can make covert interception difficult. This review examines physical fiber tapping techniques and their practical feasibility, with particular emphasis on optical power constraints, introduced loss, detectability, and implementation limitations. It also reviews prevention and monitoring approaches, including optical time-domain reflectometry, received-power monitoring, and state-of-polarization (SOP) monitoring, and provides a prospective engineering assessment of the susceptibility of MCFs and HCFs to physical tapping.
Fiber Optics Communication is also one of the major branch which is widely used in current communication world. Due to several advantages of fiber optics communication over different conventional wired communication method it is having higher priority. Though fiber optic transmits large amount of data quickly over long distance, it is vulnerable to various security attacks. The fiber optic cable can be easily tapped. Fundamental improvements can be achieved for the entire network by increasing the optical network’s performance in terms of channel capacity, data rate, and processing speed. Furthermore, the security of the optical network has an impact on the security of the entire communication system. Optical network security can be effectively protected by fiber-based methods, including all optical signal processing, optical key distribution, optical steganography, and optical chaos-based communication. Fiber-based devices do not radiate an electromagnetic signature and are immune to electromagnetic interference. To provide end to end secure fiber optic communication, a special encryption algorithm based on Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) is employed. The proposed encryption algorithm is simulated and the performance is analyzed. In this paper we are mostly dealing with the basics of fiber optics working principle, priority over other conventional communication system and role of fiber optics communication in computer networking and its vulnerabilities.