Extending the Cloud with Fog: Security Challenges & Opportunities

Fog is an emerging computing paradigm which provides storage, processing, and communication services closer to the end user. It reduces latency, provides location awareness, and supports high-density wireless networks. Fog does not replace cloud computing. It extends the cloud to the edges of the network. If properly integrated, the resulting infrastructure would provide reduced latency, geographic awareness, improved data streaming, and access to commodity resource pools. This paper provides a high-level overview of fog computing. It then describes several architectural revisions necessary to support a combined fog-cloud platform. The two primary features are a unified virtualization layer consisting of cloud and fog compute nodes and a management backplane to facilitate communication between the data center and the network edges. Assuming these modifications, the combined architecture is then subjected to a systematic security review. This analysis focuses on implications to confidentiality, integrity, and availability. The paper also includes recommendations for overcoming these security challenges through deliberate, security-conscious designs.