Privacy-Preserving Routing Vectors for Hidden Network Paths

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing privacy-preserving network protocols struggle to protect the privacy of source and destination nodes in communication networks by ensuring intermediate routing nodes cannot determine the path taken by data packets, nor correlate packets belonging to the same network flow.

Innovation Solution

A method using public key cryptography to exchange key material with intermediate nodes and build a privacy-protected source routing vector, combined with symmetric key cryptography to encode and decode routing elements, ensuring a fixed length and random permutation of positions to prevent path derivation and packet correlation.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If source routing with cryptographic mechanisms is used to protect path privacy, then the privacy of source and destination nodes is improved, but the complexity of the routing system increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvepath privacy protectionVSAvoidrouting system complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The routing path is segmented into multiple hops, with each intermediate node receiving only localized routing information for the next hop. The full path is divided into discrete segments that are encrypted and distributed sequentially, preventing any single intermediate node from obtaining complete path information while maintaining routing functionality.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

Cryptographic mechanisms act as intermediaries between the source node and intermediate nodes. Encryption algorithms and key management systems serve as mediators that protect path information from intermediate nodes while enabling them to perform their routing function, thus preserving privacy without requiring direct trust relationships.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Reliability

If intermediate nodes cannot determine the full path to prevent privacy leaks, then path privacy is improved, but the ability to prevent packet correlation attacks deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvepath privacy protectionVSAvoidpacket correlation attacks

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The source node performs preliminary actions by pre-computing and embedding encrypted routing information for the entire path before packet transmission. This includes generating encryption keys and preparing the routing vector in advance, which enables intermediate nodes to efficiently decrypt and forward packets without needing to perform complex cryptographic operations, thus maintaining privacy while enabling path verification.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The routing information parameters are transformed through cryptographic operations. The routing vector is encrypted using symmetric key cryptography, and key material is exchanged using public key cryptography. These parameter transformations protect the path information from intermediate nodes while allowing the destination node to verify the path's validity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

3Reliability

If cryptographic mechanisms are used to encode routing information, then path privacy is improved, but the processing speed at intermediate nodes deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvepath privacy protectionVSAvoidrouting processing speed

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The source node performs all complex cryptographic operations in advance, including key generation and routing vector encryption. This preliminary action eliminates the need for intermediate nodes to perform computationally intensive cryptographic operations during packet forwarding, allowing them to simply decrypt and forward packets at line rate, thus preserving both privacy and processing speed.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Data Source

PatentUS12463807B2Devices and methods for privacy-preserving routing in communication networks

Publication Date: 2025.11.04 HUAWEI TECH CO LTD

AI summary

Devices and methods for routing data packets in a communication network from a source node to a destination node via one or more intermediate routing nodes in a privacy-preserving manner are disclosed. The source node is configured to concatenate a first routing vector element including a first bit pattern with an initial routing vector defining a bit string, encrypt the concatenation using a selected first encryption key, and replace a portion of the encrypted initial routing vector at a first position by the encrypted first routing vector element. Moreover, the source node is configured to concatenate a second routing vector element, including a second bit pattern and routing information of the destination node, with the modified routing vector, encrypt the concatenation using a selected second encryption key, and replace a portion of the encrypted modified routing vector at a second position by the encrypted second routing vector element.