  Attribute-based encryption (ABE) comprises a set of one-to-many encryption
schemes that allow the encryption and decryption of data by associating it with
access policies and attributes. Therefore, it is an asymmetric encryption
scheme, and its computational requirements limit its deployment in IoT devices.
There are different types of ABE and many schemes within each type. However,
there is no consensus on the default library for ABE, and those that exist
implement different schemes. Developers, therefore, face the challenge of
balancing efficiency and security by choosing the suitable library for their
projects. This paper studies eleven ABE libraries, analyzing their main
features, the mathematical libraries used, and the ABE schemes they provide.
The paper also presents an experimental analysis of the four libraries which
are still maintained and identifies some of the insecure ABE schemes they
implement. In this experimental analysis, we implement the schemes offered by
these libraries, measuring their execution times on architectures with
different capabilities, i.e., ARMv6 and ARMv8. The experiments provide
developers with the necessary information to choose the most suitable library
for their projects, according to objective and well-defined criteria.
