2026-07-072026-07-07http://salesiana.dossiersoluciones.com/handle/123456789/103288This paper describes a new protocol for authentication in ad-hoc networks. The protocol has been designed to meet specialized requirements of ad-hoc networks, such as lack of direct communication between nodes or requirements for revocable anonymity. At the same time, a ad-hoc authentication protocol must be resistant to spoofing, eavesdropping and playback, and man-in-the-middle attacks. The article analyzes existing authentication methods based on the Public Key Infrastructure, and finds that they have several drawbacks in ad-hoc networks. Therefore, a new authentication protocol, basing on established cryptographic primitives (Merkle's puzzles and zero-knowledge proofs) is proposed. The protocol is studied for a model ad-hoc chat application that provides private conversations.8 pages, 8 figures, this an extended version of paper accepted for IASTED conference CNIS'2005Cryptography and SecurityDistributed, Parallel, and Cluster ComputingNetworking and Internet ArchitectureC.2.0; C.2.4text