A Survey of Efficient Lightweight Cryptography for Power-Constrained Microcontrollers

Protecting sensitive data, such as data collected from sensors, is crucial for ensuring the accurate assessment of sensing devices and preventing unauthorized access. In this regard, Internet of Things (IoT) devices offer a promising alternative for in situ monitoring. However, IoT sensing devices are often constrained by limited processing power and memory. Therefore, lightweight and efficient security algorithms are essential. This review paper assesses the implementation of lightweight cryptographic algorithms for power-constrained microcontrollers in IoT systems using symmetric cryptography. The implemented algorithms analyze the resource constraints of the IoT devices and compare their performance for the efficient implementation of secure monitoring systems. Experimental results demonstrate the performance of various lightweight encryption algorithms on low-power microcontrollers. The analysis reveals the comparative performance of these algorithms in terms of average power and energy consumption, memory usage, latency, and throughput.