Automated Network Appliance Provisioning via Encrypted Email
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing email transmission systems often rely on unsecured networks and require manual provisioning of security services, posing risks to private information and being inefficient in deploying encryption and decryption services.
Innovation Solution
An automated provisioning system using a certificate server to authorize and configure appliances for secure email transmission, generating and managing keys and certificates to enable encryption and decryption without user intervention, ensuring secure delivery of emails across public networks.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If manual provisioning is used to configure appliances for security services, then security services can be provided, but the process requires human intervention and manual efforts which reduces efficiency
Solution Approach 1:
The appliance automatically provisions itself by receiving a secret message via email, extracting cryptographic parameters, and configuring its own encryption and decryption capabilities without human intervention. The system serves itself by autonomously completing the provisioning workflow from receiving the secret message to becoming operational for securing email traffic.
Solution Approach 2:
The certificate server pre-generates and sends a secret message containing all necessary cryptographic parameters (private key, certificate, domain information) to the appliance before the appliance needs to provide security services. This preliminary action eliminates the need for manual configuration steps when the appliance is deployed.
2Reliability
If unsecured networks are used for email transmission, then email delivery is simple and fast, but private information may become public compromising security
Solution Approach 1:
The complex security provisioning process is extracted and consolidated into a single pre-configured secret message that is sent to the appliance. All cryptographic parameters, certificates, and configuration data are packaged together in one transmission, simplifying the deployment while maintaining strong security through automated configuration.
3Extent of automation
If automated provisioning is implemented, then efficiency is improved and human intervention is reduced, but the system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The certificate server acts as an intermediary that handles all the complexity of key generation, certificate creation, and configuration packaging. It sends a complete secret message to the appliance, transferring the provisioning burden from the appliance to the certificate server, thereby simplifying the appliance while maintaining automation.
Data Source
AI summary
Certain embodiments disclose a method of provisioning security services for a domain or set of domains. The method comprises sending an electronic message to the domain or set of domains. The electronic message comprising a secret message. The secret message is encrypted using a public key that a certificate server associates with the domain or set of domains. The method further comprises receiving a response from the domain or set of domains. The response comprises data derived by decrypting the secret message using a private key of the domain or set of domains. In response to a determination that the received data corresponds to the secret message sent in the electronic message, the method initiates the provisioning of the security services for the domain or set of domains.