Certificate Validation Proxy for Secure Communication
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current data processing systems often fail to adequately verify and enforce the use of digital certificates, leading to security breaches due to incomplete validation, such as expired certificates, self-signed certificates, and confusingly similar entity names, which can result in unauthorized data communication.
Innovation Solution
A method and system that utilize a certificate validation proxy to verify the validity of received certificates by checking against a certificate database, revocation list, and policy store, and enforce policies to ensure secure communication by either rejecting or signing/encrypting messages with valid certificates.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a data processing system uses basic certificate validation, then the system can process communications efficiently, but security is compromised due to incomplete validation of certificates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a certificate validation proxy as an intermediary component that sits between the application and the certificate validation process. This proxy handles the complex validation tasks including checking certificate databases, revocation lists, and policy stores, while the application itself remains simple and focused on its core communication functions. The proxy acts as a mediator that performs the computationally intensive and complex validation operations independently.
Solution Approach 2:
The validation system is segmented into distinct functional components: the certificate validation proxy, the certificate database, the revocation list, and the policy store. Each component has a specific responsibility - the proxy manages validation logic, the database stores valid certificates, the revocation list tracks invalidated certificates, and the policy store defines validation rules. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently and improves overall system reliability.
2Reliability
If the system performs comprehensive certificate validation including checking against certificate databases and revocation lists, then security is improved, but processing time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by pre-loading and maintaining up-to-date certificate databases, revocation lists, and policy stores in the validation proxy before they are needed for actual communication validation. The proxy proactively manages these validation resources, ensuring they are ready and current before validation is required, which reduces the time penalty during actual communication operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The validation proxy implements feedback mechanisms by continuously monitoring and updating its certificate database, revocation lists, and policy information. When certificates are added, revoked, or when policies change, the proxy receives feedback and updates its validation state accordingly. This ensures that validation decisions are based on current information without requiring full re-validation of all certificates.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the system accepts invalid certificates such as expired or self-signed certificates, then communication flexibility is improved, but security vulnerabilities increase
Solution Approach 1:
The validation system is made dynamic through the policy store, which contains configurable rules that determine how different types of certificate invalidity are handled. The system can adapt its validation strictness based on the specific context - for example, allowing expired certificates beyond a certain threshold date, or permitting self-signed certificates from trusted entities while rejecting others. This dynamic policy-based approach balances security requirements with operational flexibility.
Data Source
AI summary
A method, system, and computer usable program product for verifying and enforcing certificate use are provided in the illustrative embodiments. A certificate is received from a sender. The certificate is validated before communicating a message associated with the certificate to a receiver. If the certificate is invalid, a policy is selected based on a type of invalidity of the certificate. An action is taken to enforce the policy for using the certificate. The certificate may be received from the sender at a proxy. The validating may further include verifying the validity of the certificate using a certificate from a certificate database accessible to the proxy over a network. the proxy may copy a part of the certificate database to a second certificate database local to the proxy. The validating may further include verifying the validity of the certificate using a certificate revocation list accessible to the proxy over a network.