Paper 2025/2255
LPG: Raise Your Location Privacy Game in Direct-to-Cell LEO Satellite Networks
, National University of Singapore, Peking University, University of Sheffield, Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications, Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications, Peking University, Peking University, Key Laboratory of High Confidence Software Technologies, Ministry of Education (PKU), Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications, Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications, National University of SingaporeAbstract
Multi-tenant direct-to-cell (D2C) Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite networks pose significant risks to users’ location privacy by linking Mobile Network Operator (MNO)- managed identities with Satellite Network Operator (SNO)- visible locations. Existing privacy solutions are ill-suited to the resource-constrained hardware and orbital dynamics of these satellite environments. We present LPG (Location Privacy Game), the first protocol-layer solution offering user-configurable location privacy for D2C LEO. LPG achieves this via identity-location decoupling: SNOs provide connectivity without visibility of user identity, while MNOs manage service and billing without access to precise location information. LPG enables offline secure authentication and key agreement without revealing user identity to satellites, supports user-configurable location disclosure at chosen geographic granularity for essential service needs, and ensures fair billing between MNOs and SNOs through privacy-preserving settlement. Our implementation on a real-world in-orbit LEO satellite and commercial mobile phones demonstrates that LPG is practical and viable in resource-constrained, highly-dynamic LEO environments.
Metadata
- Available format(s)
-
PDF
- Category
- Applications
- Publication info
- Published elsewhere. Usenix Security 2026
- Keywords
- location privacysatellite securitynetworkproof of locationauthenticationsatellite systemzk-SNARK
- Contact author(s)
-
shi quan @ u nus edu
altrialist @ stu pku edu cn
p gope @ sheffield ac uk
liangqi @ bupt edu cn
2023212429 @ bupt cn
qirui_liu @ pku edu cn
chenren xu @ gmail com
sgwang @ bupt edu cn
qingli @ bupt edu cn
bsikdar @ nus edu sg - History
- 2025-12-18: approved
- 2025-12-16: received
- See all versions
- Short URL
- https://ia.cr/2025/2255
- License
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CC BY
BibTeX
@misc{cryptoeprint:2025/2255,
author = {Quan Shi and Liying Wang and Prosanta Gope and Qi Liang and Haowen Wang and Qirui Liu and Chenren Xu and Shangguang Wang and Qing Li and Biplab Sikdar},
title = {{LPG}: Raise Your Location Privacy Game in Direct-to-Cell {LEO} Satellite Networks},
howpublished = {Cryptology {ePrint} Archive, Paper 2025/2255},
year = {2025},
url = {https://eprint.iacr.org/2025/2255}
}
