Local Server Proxy for Secure Device Authentication
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for establishing secure communication connections between devices and servers are compromised by the need for direct network access, especially for remote devices that lack access to authentication servers, and the vulnerability of personally owned devices to rogue applications.
Innovation Solution
A method and system that utilize a second local server to establish a secure communication connection on behalf of a device, using strong authentication protocols like Kerberos, to proxy data and impersonate the device, thereby allowing secure access without requiring the device to have direct access to the authentication server.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a device establishes direct network access to authentication servers, then authentication capability is improved, but network security and device security are worsened due to exposure to malicious activities
Solution Approach 1:
A gateway server is introduced as an intermediary component that sits between the remote device and the authentication server. The gateway server receives authentication requests from devices without direct network access, performs the authentication operations on behalf of these devices, and returns results. This mediator approach allows devices to authenticate through the gateway without directly connecting to authentication servers, thus maintaining security while enabling authentication capability.
2Device complexity
If symmetric cryptography is used for secure communication, then encryption simplicity is improved, but key exchange security is worsened due to vulnerability of private key transmission
Solution Approach 1:
The private key exchange operation is extracted and separated from the main communication flow. Instead of transmitting private keys during connection establishment, the system uses public key infrastructure where only public keys are exchanged. The private keys remain securely stored on respective devices and never leave those devices. This extraction of the vulnerable key exchange step eliminates the security vulnerability while maintaining symmetric cryptography for data encryption.
3Reliability
If asymmetric cryptography is used to avoid private key transmission, then key exchange security is improved, but computational complexity and connection establishment time are worsened
Solution Approach 1:
Public key pairs are generated and registered with authentication servers in advance, before actual communication needs arise. This preliminary setup allows the authentication server to already have the necessary public keys stored and ready. When a connection is needed, the system can quickly retrieve and use these pre-configured keys without performing time-consuming key generation or exchange operations at the moment of connection, thus reducing connection establishment time while maintaining the security benefits of asymmetric cryptography.
4Reliability
If security tokens with frequent expiration are used, then authentication security is improved, but user convenience and access continuity are worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The gateway server maintains continuous authenticated sessions with authentication servers and keeps valid authentication credentials cached. Once a device authenticates through the gateway, the gateway establishes a persistent connection that remains valid for multiple subsequent requests. This continuous authenticated session allows users to access multiple resources without repeatedly entering credentials, maintaining security through the initial authentication while providing convenience through the sustained session validity.
Data Source
AI summary
A method of establishing a secure communications path between a first local server on a local network and a device on a wide area network comprising: establishing a first secure communications connection between a second local server on the local network and the device; establishing a second secure communications connection between the second local server and the first local server, wherein the second local server impersonates the device for at least a portion of the connection request; and proxying data between the local server and the device.