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IEEE International Conference on Computer Science and Information Technology

Man-in-the-middle attack on BB84 protocol and its defence

Jinxiang Huang, Yong Wang, Huadeng Wang, Zhaohong Li, Jinxiang Huang

Published Aug 1, 2009• 20 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Man-in-the-middle attack on the BB84 protocol is presented. The man in the middle can intercept the message from the sender and send his message to the receiver in every step of the BB84 protocol. The attack can be analogously used on other quantum key distribution schemes. Some methods are suggested to defense against the attack by discovering the attack or handicapping the attack, and the security of BB84 protocol is analyzed.

DOI
10.1109/iccsit.2009.5234678

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Man-in-the-middle attack on the BB84 protocol is presented. The man in the middle can intercept the message from the sender and send his message to the receiver in every step of the BB84 protocol. The attack can be analogously used on other quantum key distribution schemes. Some methods are suggested to defense against the attack by discovering the attack or handicapping the attack, and the security of BB84 protocol is analyzed.
Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) protocols theo- retically propose a high-security level based on the advantages of quantum computing. This paper analyze the security level of one of the most well-known QKD protocols, BB84, against the man-in-the-middle attack strategy. Specifically, we leverage quantum entanglement to enhance communication security by the injection of a malicious photon in the middle of transmission. In the security analysis, we measure the variation in mutual information between the sender-receiver and sender-attacker to assess the protocol's resilience against potential attacks.
The main purpose of quantum key distribution protocols is to provide a practical and secure transmission of the single-use key used in encryption at the sender and receiver side. In the classical method, both parties cannot be sure that the key has not been taken over by an attacker. Since the quantum key exchange method basically relies on quantum physics, it provides higher security than conventional key distribution methods. In this study, the first and most used BB84 protocol, which is one of the quantum key distribution (QKD) protocols, and the distribution of the key between the receiver and the sender in the simulation environment and the attempt of the attacker to achieve the key was performed in the simulation environment. The results obtained in the last section are analyzed and suggestions are made for future studies.
As the core of quantum communication, the security analysis of Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) has always been a hot and difficult issue in the field of quantum communication. Aiming at the complicated and cumbersome problems existing in the current QKD protocol security analysis method, this paper proposes a formal analysis method based on colored Petri nets, and the Petri net model of BB84 protocol and B92 protocol is established by using this method. Man-in-the-middle attack is a common attack mode in quantum communication at present. We also use this method to model and analyze the man-in-the-middle attack. The experimental results show that BB84 and B92 protocols are as vulnerable to man-in-the-middle attack as any classical protocol without authentication.
The development of the Willow quantum chip by Google has sparked significant interest in quantum computing, driving innovation in the field. As quantum computing technology continues to mature, secure quantum communication has garnered increasing attention. To establish secure communication, several quantum key distribution (QKD) protocols have been proposed, such as the BB84 protocol, which leverages the principles of quantum superposition and other quantum properties to ensure secure transmission. However, existing QKD protocols may face vulnerabilities under certain conditions. This study proposes two types of man-in-the-middle (MITM) attack techniques and demonstrates their potential to compromise quantum cryptography through practical case studies. Furthermore, this study proposes strategies to counteract these MITM attacks and proposes methods to enhance the security of quantum cryptographic systems. The findings offer valuable insights for the future implementation and deployment of secure quantum communication systems.
We consider a man-in-the-middle attack on two-way quantum key distribution ping-pong and LM05 protocols in which an eavesdropper copies all messages in the message mode, while being undetectable in the mode. Under the attack there is therefore no disturbance in the message mode and the mutual information between the sender and the receiver is always constant and equal to one and messages copied by the eavesdropper are always genuine. An attack can only be detected in the control mode but the level of detection at which the protocol should be aborted is not defined. We examine steps of the protocol to evaluate its security and find that the protocol should be redesigned. We also compare it with the security of a one-way asymmetric BB84-like protocol in which one basis serves as the message mode and the other as the control mode but which does have the level of detection at which the protocol should be aborted defined.