End-to-End Packet Encryption Key for Wireless Networks
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Advanced wireless architectures, such as those with flat IP structures, expose security functions to increased physical and eavesdropping risks due to the integration of sensitive elements at physically insecure locations, necessitating effective end-to-end safeguards without major changes to existing standards.
Innovation Solution
Establishing an end-to-end packet encryption key (PEK) using extant hop-by-hop security associations, where nodes share integrity keys to encrypt and verify packets, ensuring secure transmission and authenticity verification between wireless user terminals and the IP network.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If security functions are integrated at physically insecure locations to enable flat IP architecture, then network adaptability and modernization are improved, but security reliability deteriorates due to increased physical and eavesdropping risks
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the security functionality into two distinct parts: (1) key generation and packet encryption/decryption performed at the wireless access terminals and base transceiver nodes, and (2) key distribution and management handled by the authentication server. This segmentation allows the security-critical operations to be distributed to physically secure locations (user terminals and base stations) while maintaining the benefits of flat IP architecture.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an authentication server as an intermediary that securely manages the distribution of encryption keys between base transceiver nodes and wireless access terminals. This intermediary establishes secure channels for key exchange and verification, protecting against eavesdropping and tampering while enabling the flat IP network architecture to function securely.
2Reliability
If end-to-end encryption is implemented to protect against malicious activities, then security reliability is improved, but device complexity increases due to additional encryption and verification mechanisms
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements preliminary action by establishing security associations and distributing encryption keys before actual data transmission occurs. The authentication server pre-establishes secure channels and provides encryption keys to both the base transceiver node and the wireless access terminal in advance, so that when data packets are transmitted, the encryption and verification processes are already in place and operate efficiently without adding significant complexity during the actual communication phase.
3Ease of operation
If hop-by-hop security associations are used for key distribution, then ease of operation is improved, but security reliability worsens due to multiple exposure points in the transmission path
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses copying by having the authentication server generate a master encryption key and then create derived encryption keys that are distributed to both the base transceiver node and the wireless access terminal. These copied/derived keys enable both parties to independently encrypt and verify packets without needing to exchange sensitive key material through multiple intermediate nodes, thus maintaining ease of operation while eliminating the security exposure risks of traditional hop-by-hop key distribution.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
Methods are provided for securely transmitting a packet between' endpoints (120,140) of a- network. In one aspect, there is provided a method for establishing an end-to-end key using extant hop-by-hop security associations. In a second aspect, there is provided a method in which a packet-specific encryption key PEK is used to encrypt a packet p. A signature of the key PEK is independently computed at each of two, nodes, using an integrity key shared by the two nodes. The signature is sent from one of the two nodes to the other in association with the packet p. The receiving node uses the signature to verify that the packet p was originated by an entity having possession fo the PEK.