The General Gaussian Multiple Access and Two-Way Wire-Tap Channels: Achievable Rates and Cooperative Jamming

The General Gaussian Multiple Access Wire-Tap Channel (GGMAC-WT) and the Gaussian Two-Way Wire-Tap Channel (GTW-WT) are considered. In the GGMAC-WT, multiple users communicate with an intended receiver in the presence of an eavesdropper who receives their signals through another GMAC. In the GTW-WT, two users communicate with each other over a common Gaussian channel, with an eavesdropper listening through a GMAC. A secrecy measure that is suitable for this multi-terminal environment is defined, and achievable secrecy rate regions are found for both channels. For both cases, the power allocations maximizing the achievable secrecy sum-rate are determined. It is seen that the optimum policy may prevent some terminals from transmission in order to preserve the secrecy of the system. Inspired by this construct, a new scheme, \ital{cooperative jamming}, is proposed, where users who are prevented from transmitting according to the secrecy sum-rate maximizing power allocation policy "jam" the eavesdropper, thereby helping the remaining users. This scheme is shown to increase the achievable secrecy sum-rate. Overall, our results show that in multiple-access scenarios, users can help each other to collectively achieve positive secrecy rates. In other words, cooperation among users can be invaluable for achieving secrecy for the system.