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Authentication in quantum key growing

Jörgen Cederlöf

Published Jan 1, 2005• 5 citations
OpenAlex

Abstract

Quantum key growing, often called quantum cryptography or quantum key distribution, is a method using some properties of quantum mechanics to create a secret shared cryptography key even if an eavesdropper has access to unlimited computational power. A vital but often neglected part of the method is unconditionally secure message authentication. This thesis examines the security aspects of authentication in quantum key growing. Important concepts are formalized as Python program source code, a comparison between quantum key growing and a classical system using trusted couriers is included, and the chain rule of entropy is generalized to any Rényi entropy. Finally and most importantly, a security flaw is identified which makes the probability to eavesdrop on the system undetected approach unity as the system is in use for a long time, and a solution to this problem is provided.

Related papers

Security aspects of the authentication used in quantum key growing

Jörgen Cederlöf, Jan-Åke Larsson

Unconditionally secure message authentication is an important part of Quantum Cryptography (QC).We analyze security effects of using a key obtained from QC in later rounds of QC. It has been determined earlier that partial knowledge of the key in itself does not incur a security problem. However, by accessing the quantum channel used in QC, the attacker can change the message to be authenticated. This, together with partial knowledge of the key does incur a security weakness of the authentication. We suggest a simple solution to this problem, and stress usage of this or an equivalent extra security measure in QC.

Proceedings of SPIE, the International Society for Optical Engineering/Proceedings of SPIE•Sep 28, 2006•1 citation

Unconditionally Secure Authentication in Quantum Key Distribution

Sufyan T. F. Al-Janabi

Quantum key distribution (QKD) is a method using some properties of quantum mechanics to create a secret shared cryptographic key even if an eavesdropper has access to unlimited computational power. All QKD protocols require that the parties have access to an authentic channel. Otherwise, QKD is vulnerable to man-in-the-middle attacks. This paper studies QKD from this point of view, emphasizing the necessity and sufficiency of using unconditionally secure authentication in QKD. In this work, a new technique of using unconditionally secure authentication is proposed for quantum cryptosystems. This technique is based on a hybrid of normal application of authentication codes and the so-called “counter-based” authentication method such that to achieve a better trade-off between security and efficiency (in terms of the required size of initially shared secret data). Based on this strategy, an authenticated version of a typical QKD protocol (the well-known BB84 protocol) is described. Some advantages of our protocol in comparison to other proposals are also highlighted.

i-manager’s Journal on Software Engineering•Mar 15, 2007•4 citations

Unconditionally Secure Authentication in Quantum Key Distribution

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Quantum key distribution (QKD) is a method using some properties of quantum mechanics to create a secret shared cryptographic key even if an eavesdropper has access to unlimited computational power. All QKD protocols require that the parties have access to an authentic channel. Otherwise, QKD is vulnerable to man-in-themiddle attacks. This paper studies QKD from this point of view, emphasizing the necessity and sufficiency of using unconditionally secure authentication in QKD. In this work, a hybrid unconditionally secure authentication strategy is proposed for QKD protocols. It is based on a mixture of normal application of authentication codes and the so-called "counter-based" authentication method such that to achieve a better trade off between security and efficiency (in terms of the required size of initially shared secret data). Based on this strategy, a complete authenticated QKD protocol is described for a specific implementation of the well-known BB84 protocol. Some advantages of our protocol in comparison to other proposals are also highlighted.

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Management of security in quantum cryptography

Marcin Niemiec, Andrzej R. Pach

The interest in quantum-based security methods has been growing rapidly in recent years. New implementations of quantum key distribution and new network services supported by this solution are being introduced. The reason behind the growing popularity of quantum cryptography is its unrivaled security level: all eavesdroppers can be revealed through the application of the laws of physics. First of all, the rules of quantum mechanics ensure that any measurement modifies the state of the transmitted quantum bit. This modification can be discovered by the sender and the receiver. This makes passive eavesdropping impossible. Using protocols such as BB84, network users are able to send a string of bits coded by the polarized photons. After that, they can establish secure cryptographic keys through an unsecure channel using different key distillation methods. Major ongoing challenges include the control and management of security in systems using quantum cryptography, as well as tailoring security to specific end user's requirements and services.

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Security Aspects of the Authentication Used in Quantum Cryptography

Jörgen Cederlöf, Jan-Åke Larsson

Unconditionally secure message authentication is an important part of quantum cryptography (QC). In this correspondence, we analyze security effects of using a key obtained from QC for authentication purposes in later rounds of QC. In particular, the eavesdropper gains partial knowledge on the key in QC that may have an effect on the security of the authentication in the later round. Our initial analysis indicates that this partial knowledge has little effect on the authentication part of the system, in agreement with previous results on the issue. However, when taking the full QC protocol into account, the picture is different. By accessing the quantum channel used in QC, the attacker can change the message to be authenticated. This, together with partial knowledge of the key, does incur a security weakness of the authentication. The underlying reason for this is that the authentication used, which is insensitive to such message changes when the key is unknown, becomes sensitive when used with a partially known key. We suggest a simple solution to this problem, and stress usage of this or an equivalent extra security measure in QC.

arXiv:quant-ph/0611009•IEEE Transactions on Information Theory•Mar 27, 2008•59 citations

Security Aspects of the Authentication Used in Quantum Cryptography

Jörgen Cederlöf, Jan-Åke Larsson

Unconditionally secure message authentication is an important part of Quantum Cryptography (QC). We analyze security effects of using a key obtained from QC in later rounds of QC. It has been determined earlier that partial knowledge of the key in itself does not incur a security problem. However, by accessing the quantum channel used in QC, the attacker can change the message to be authenticated. This, together with partial knowledge of the key does incur a security weakness of the authentication. We suggest a simple solution to this problem, and stress usage of this or an equivalent extra security measure in QC.

AIP conference proceedings•Jan 1, 2007•3 citations
Quantum key growing, often called quantum cryptography or quantum key distribution, is a method using some properties of quantum mechanics to create a secret shared cryptography key even if an eavesdropper has access to unlimited computational power. A vital but often neglected part of the method is unconditionally secure message authentication. This thesis examines the security aspects of authentication in quantum key growing. Important concepts are formalized as Python program source code, a comparison between quantum key growing and a classical system using trusted couriers is included, and the chain rule of entropy is generalized to any Rényi entropy. Finally and most importantly, a security flaw is identified which makes the probability to eavesdrop on the system undetected approach unity as the system is in use for a long time, and a solution to this problem is provided.
Unconditionally secure message authentication is an important part of Quantum Cryptography (QC).We analyze security effects of using a key obtained from QC in later rounds of QC. It has been determined earlier that partial knowledge of the key in itself does not incur a security problem. However, by accessing the quantum channel used in QC, the attacker can change the message to be authenticated. This, together with partial knowledge of the key does incur a security weakness of the authentication. We suggest a simple solution to this problem, and stress usage of this or an equivalent extra security measure in QC.
Quantum key distribution (QKD) is a method using some properties of quantum mechanics to create a secret shared cryptographic key even if an eavesdropper has access to unlimited computational power. All QKD protocols require that the parties have access to an authentic channel. Otherwise, QKD is vulnerable to man-in-the-middle attacks. This paper studies QKD from this point of view, emphasizing the necessity and sufficiency of using unconditionally secure authentication in QKD. In this work, a new technique of using unconditionally secure authentication is proposed for quantum cryptosystems. This technique is based on a hybrid of normal application of authentication codes and the so-called “counter-based” authentication method such that to achieve a better trade-off between security and efficiency (in terms of the required size of initially shared secret data). Based on this strategy, an authenticated version of a typical QKD protocol (the well-known BB84 protocol) is described. Some advantages of our protocol in comparison to other proposals are also highlighted.
Quantum key distribution (QKD) is a method using some properties of quantum mechanics to create a secret shared cryptographic key even if an eavesdropper has access to unlimited computational power. All QKD protocols require that the parties have access to an authentic channel. Otherwise, QKD is vulnerable to man-in-themiddle attacks. This paper studies QKD from this point of view, emphasizing the necessity and sufficiency of using unconditionally secure authentication in QKD. In this work, a hybrid unconditionally secure authentication strategy is proposed for QKD protocols. It is based on a mixture of normal application of authentication codes and the so-called "counter-based" authentication method such that to achieve a better trade off between security and efficiency (in terms of the required size of initially shared secret data). Based on this strategy, a complete authenticated QKD protocol is described for a specific implementation of the well-known BB84 protocol. Some advantages of our protocol in comparison to other proposals are also highlighted.
The interest in quantum-based security methods has been growing rapidly in recent years. New implementations of quantum key distribution and new network services supported by this solution are being introduced. The reason behind the growing popularity of quantum cryptography is its unrivaled security level: all eavesdroppers can be revealed through the application of the laws of physics. First of all, the rules of quantum mechanics ensure that any measurement modifies the state of the transmitted quantum bit. This modification can be discovered by the sender and the receiver. This makes passive eavesdropping impossible. Using protocols such as BB84, network users are able to send a string of bits coded by the polarized photons. After that, they can establish secure cryptographic keys through an unsecure channel using different key distillation methods. Major ongoing challenges include the control and management of security in systems using quantum cryptography, as well as tailoring security to specific end user's requirements and services.
Unconditionally secure message authentication is an important part of quantum cryptography (QC). In this correspondence, we analyze security effects of using a key obtained from QC for authentication purposes in later rounds of QC. In particular, the eavesdropper gains partial knowledge on the key in QC that may have an effect on the security of the authentication in the later round. Our initial analysis indicates that this partial knowledge has little effect on the authentication part of the system, in agreement with previous results on the issue. However, when taking the full QC protocol into account, the picture is different. By accessing the quantum channel used in QC, the attacker can change the message to be authenticated. This, together with partial knowledge of the key, does incur a security weakness of the authentication. The underlying reason for this is that the authentication used, which is insensitive to such message changes when the key is unknown, becomes sensitive when used with a partially known key. We suggest a simple solution to this problem, and stress usage of this or an equivalent extra security measure in QC.
Unconditionally secure message authentication is an important part of Quantum Cryptography (QC). We analyze security effects of using a key obtained from QC in later rounds of QC. It has been determined earlier that partial knowledge of the key in itself does not incur a security problem. However, by accessing the quantum channel used in QC, the attacker can change the message to be authenticated. This, together with partial knowledge of the key does incur a security weakness of the authentication. We suggest a simple solution to this problem, and stress usage of this or an equivalent extra security measure in QC.