Cryptographic Protocol Capability Exchange for Secure Messaging
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Solution Overview
Problem
In cryptographic messaging systems like S/MIME, when sending messages to uncommunicated recipients, only default cryptographic algorithms are used due to lack of knowledge about the recipient's supported protocols, potentially missing the opportunity to use stronger algorithms supported by both sender and receiver.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a system where mobile devices and desktop computers exchange and cache cryptographic protocol capabilities, allowing the selection of the strongest intersecting protocols for secure message processing, by including protocol capabilities in the message and updating recipient caches for future communications.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If default cryptographic algorithms are used when sending messages to uncommunicated recipients, then compatibility is ensured, but cryptographic strength is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary exchange of cryptographic capability information before actual message encryption. When a recipient sends a message to a sender, they include their supported cryptographic algorithms in the message. The sender caches this information and uses it in future communications to select stronger algorithms without compromising compatibility.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements feedback by including cryptographic capability information in transmitted messages. The recipient's supported algorithms are fed back to the sender, who then uses this information to make informed decisions about which cryptographic protocols to use in subsequent communications, optimizing security while ensuring compatibility.
2Reliability
If cryptographic capability information is exchanged between devices, then stronger algorithms can be used, but message processing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system extracts cryptographic capability information from the message payload and processes it separately through dedicated caching mechanisms. By isolating the capability exchange process from the main message processing flow, the system reduces complexity while enabling stronger cryptographic algorithms to be selected based on pre-exchanged capability data.
Solution Approach 2:
Cryptographic capability information is exchanged and cached in advance before actual message encryption occurs. This preliminary action allows the system to determine the strongest compatible algorithm beforehand, simplifying the actual message processing step while achieving higher cryptographic strength.
3Reliability
If protocol capabilities are included in every message, then optimal algorithms can be selected, but message size increases
Solution Approach 1:
Cryptographic capability information is exchanged once and cached for future use, rather than being included in every message. This preliminary exchange reduces message size in subsequent communications while maintaining the ability to select optimal cryptographic algorithms based on the cached capability data.
Solution Approach 2:
The system applies different strategies to different messages: the first message includes full capability information for caching, while subsequent messages use the cached information locally at each device, reducing redundancy and message size while maintaining cryptographic optimization.
Data Source
AI summary
In some data communication configurations, data received from a sender may need to be viewed or otherwise processed by more than one entity with a corresponding client. For example, a message sent to a corporate email address may be viewed by either or both a mobile device and a desktop device. For the sender to utilize the strongest algorithm or protocol used by the recipient, it would therefore need to know which algorithms or protocols are supported by both the mobile and desktop mail clients. A system and method are provided to enable the mobile device to know about the capabilities of related mail clients associated with the communication address (e.g. email address) and vice versa such that the intersection of the capabilities (i.e. the strongest algorithm or protocol supported by all parties involved) can be chosen and the messages or data cryptographically processed accordingly.