Short-range audio channels have a few distinguishing characteristics: ease of use, low deployment costs, and easy to tune frequencies, to cite a few. Moreover, thanks to their seamless adaptability to the security context, many techniques and tools based on audio signals have been recently proposed. However, while the most promising solutions are turning into valuable commercial products, acoustic channels are increasingly used also to launch attacks against systems and devices, leading to security concerns that could thwart their adoption. To provide a rigorous, scientific, security-oriented review of the field, in this paper we survey and classify methods, applications, and use-cases rooted on short-range audio channels for the provisioning of security services---including Two-Factor Authentication techniques, pairing solutions, device authorization strategies, defense methodologies, and attack schemes. Moreover, we also point out the strengths and weaknesses deriving from the use of short-range audio channels. Finally, we provide open research issues in the context of short-range audio channels security, calling for contributions from both academia and industry.

中文翻译：

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短程音频通道安全：机制、应用和研究挑战调查

短程音频通道有几个显着特点：易于使用、部署成本低、易于调谐频率，仅举几例。此外，由于它们对安全上下文的无缝适应性，最近提出了许多基于音频信号的技术和工具。然而，虽然最有前途的解决方案正在转变为有价值的商业产品，但声学信道也越来越多地用于对系统和设备发起攻击，从而导致可能阻碍其采用的安全问题。为了对该领域进行严格、科学、面向安全的审查，在本文中，我们调查并分类了基于短距离音频通道的方法、应用程序和用例，用于提供安全服务——包括双因素身份验证技术、配对解决方案、设备授权策略、防御方法和攻击方案。此外，我们还指出了使用短距离音频通道的优势和劣势。最后，我们在短距离音频通道安全的背景下提供开放的研究问题，呼吁学术界和工业界的贡献。