ECE Student Receives Best Paper Award at IEEE INFOCOM 2025
UNC Charlotte PhD student Munmun Talukder has been awarded the prestigious Best Paper Award at IEEE INFOCOM 2025 for his innovative research on Wi-Fi network security. His paper, “Safeguarding Wi-Fi 7 and Beyond: Tackling Protocol-Aware Jamming in Multi-AP Coordination,” was selected from over 1,400 submissions, with only 272 accepted, reflecting the highly competitive nature of the conference. Among the 15 papers nominated for the Best Paper Award, Talukder’s work stood out, earning him a spot among the top three. This recognition places him among an elite group of researchers and is a testament to the significance of his contributions to the field of wireless communication. The INFOCOM 2025 conference will take place in London this May.
Talukder’s research focuses on a critical security vulnerability in Wi-Fi 7’s Multi-Access Point Coordination (MAP-Co) feature, which allows multiple Wi-Fi routers to collaborate for low-latency services. The vulnerability, known as protocol-aware jamming, enables malicious devices to disrupt key control signals between routers, causing them to stop cooperating or block user data without detection. This type of attack poses serious risks in environments like hospitals, where Wi-Fi-connected devices such as infusion pumps are crucial for patient care. Talukder’s work identifies this hidden threat in next-generation Wi-Fi systems, a problem that had previously been overlooked.
To address this vulnerability, Talukder developed a novel set of defenses that introduce unpredictability into the network, making it more difficult for attackers to target key signals. These defenses are lightweight, ensuring minimal impact on network performance while providing robust protection against jamming attempts. The research not only secures Wi-Fi 7 but also offers a scalable solution for future wireless technologies. Under the mentorship of Professor Linda Xie, Talukder’s groundbreaking work has the potential to significantly enhance the security and reliability of wireless networks, ensuring that they remain safe and efficient as they evolve.