Public-Key Infrastructure (PKI)

SMU CSE 5349/7349

 What is PKI?
• Pervasive security infrastructure whose
services are implemented and delivered
using public-key concepts and techniques
-(C. Adams, S. Lloyd)
– Secure sign-on
– End-user transparency
– Comprehensive security

SMU CSE 5349/7349

 Business Drivers
• Cost savings
• Inter-operability
• Uniformity
• Potential for validation/testing
• Choice of provider

Consider the analogy with BUS architecture vs.

point-to-point links

SMU CSE 5349/7349

 Components and Services
• Certification authority
• Certificate repository
• Certificate revocation
• Key backup and recovery
• Automatic key update
• Key history
• Cross-certification
• Support for non-repudiation
• Time stamping

SMU CSE 5349/7349

 Certificates
• Certificate vs. signature
• Types of certificates
– X.509 (v1, v2, v3)
– Simple Public Key Infrastructure (SPKI)
certificates
– PGP certificates
– Attribute certificates

SMU CSE 5349/7349

 Certificate Format
• Version number
• Serial number
• Signature algorithm identifier
• Issuer name
• Period of validity
• Subject name
• Subject’s public-key info.
• Issuer unique ID
• Subject unique ID
• Extensions
• Signature

SMU CSE 5349/7349

 Key/Certificate Life Cycle
• Initialization
– Registration
– Key-pair generation (where?)
– Certificate creation and dissemination
– Key backup
• Issued
– Certificate retrieval
– Certificate validation
• Cancellation
– Expiration
– Revocation
– History and archive
SMU CSE 5349/7349
 Certificate Path Processing
• Eventual objective is to determine whether
the key in a given certificate can be
trusted
– Path construction – aggregation of certificates
to form a complete path
– Path validation – validating each certificate in
the path
Target certificate is trusted only if every
certificate in the path are trustworthy

SMU CSE 5349/7349

 X.509 Hierarchy
• Forward certificates
– Certificate of X generated by other CAs
• Reverse certificates
– Certificates of other CAs generated by X
• Example from the book (showed in last
class)

SMU CSE 5349/7349

 Authentication Procedures
• One-way
• Two-way
• Three-way

SMU CSE 5349/7349

 Problems with PKI
• Hierarchical model of trust
– Chain of partial trust ending in one “fully trusted” entity
• Identifier associated with the key pair
– Unique distinguished name within the namespace
• Private-key insecurity
– Has to protect the private key
• Technical and Implementation difficulties
– Assumption of global namespace
– Difficulty in detecting key compromise
– Inefficient revocation

SMU CSE 5349/7349

 PKI Problems (cont’d)
• Limited assurance provided in reality
– CA’s generally protected in case of failure
– What certificate assure (usually)
• A particular message was generated by an entity that had
available to it a particular private key; and
• CA that provided the certificate has, at some time in the
past, had grounds for believing that that private key was
associated with a particular entity.
• CA that provided the certificate has, at some time in the
past, had grounds for believing that the entity had some
kind of right to use that identifier, or had used that
identifier in the past; and
• CA that provided the certificate has, at some time in the
past, had grounds for believing that the entity had access
to the appropriate private key.

SMU CSE 5349/7349

 Problems (cont’d)
– What it does not ensure
• Private key was originally available to other entities as well as the
entity to which it purports to be 'bound';
• Private key is now available to other entities as well as the entity to
which it purports to be 'bound';
• Private key invocation that gave rise to a particular message was
performed by the entity; and
• Private key invocation that gave rise to a particular message was
performed with the entity's free and informed consent.
• Privacy invasiveness
– Just to talk to your buddy securely, you may need to tell your
life story to a third party!
• Idiosyncrasy:
– In order to have trust in the party you are transacting with,
you are expected to have trust in organizations you have no
relationship with at all

SMU CSE 5349/7349

 What is Really Needed!
• Minimal Use of Identifiers
• Minimal Registration Requirements
• Mechanisms for Persistent Anonymity
• Value Authentication without Identity
• Attribute Authentication without Identity
• Recourse in case of violation

SMU CSE 5349/7349

 Alternatives to PKI
• Web of trust like in PGP
• Simple Distributed PKI (SDPKI)
• Login ID, password
• Biometrics
• Other form of cetificates

SMU CSE 5349/7349