Reusable Cryptographic Keying for Multi-Receiver BLE Messages
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing wireless communication technologies face challenges in protecting radio-frequency signals from unauthorized access and eavesdropping, particularly when establishing secure communications between an agent and an owner through multiple receivers, often leading to complex fragmentation and limited receiver mobility.
Innovation Solution
The technique involves generating a cryptographic value based on a shared secret between an agent and an owner, using it to create a reusable key that acts as both a public key for encryption and decryption, allowing secure communication with multiple receivers using a single group element, thereby reducing message size and eliminating the need for fragmentation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional cryptographic methods are used for secure communication with multiple receivers, then security is maintained, but message size increases and requires fragmentation
Solution Approach 1:
The reusable key serves multiple functions simultaneously: it acts as a public key for encryption by the first receiver, as a public key for decryption by the second receiver, and enables both receivers to derive their respective private keys from the same cryptographic value. This multi-functionality eliminates the need to transmit separate keys for each receiver, reducing message size while maintaining security
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges the cryptographic values for multiple receivers into a single reusable key that can be derived from one shared secret. Instead of transmitting separate cryptographic parameters for each receiver (which would require multiple group elements), the system combines them into one group element that enables secure communication with multiple receivers through key derivation
2Reliability
If traditional cryptographic methods are used for secure communication with multiple receivers, then security is maintained, but system complexity increases due to fragmentation
Solution Approach 1:
The reusable key serves multiple functions simultaneously: it acts as a public key for encryption by the first receiver, as a public key for decryption by the second receiver, and enables both receivers to derive their respective private keys from the same cryptographic value. This multi-functionality eliminates the need to transmit separate keys for each receiver, reducing message size while maintaining security
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the essential cryptographic functionality into a single reusable key that can be derived from one shared secret. By taking out only the necessary cryptographic parameters (one group element) and eliminating redundant transmission of multiple keys, the system reduces complexity while maintaining the security function
3Reliability
If larger message sizes are used to maintain security with multiple receivers, then security is maintained, but transmission over low-power wireless technologies becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the cryptographic parameters from traditional multi-key systems to a single reusable key derived from a shared secret. This parameter change reduces the message size to fit within the constraints of low-power wireless technologies like Bluetooth Low Energy, while maintaining security through the mathematical properties of the cryptographic derivation
Data Source
AI summary
Techniques and apparatuses are described for piggybacking multiple receivers on a cryptographic value. In example aspects, an agent generates a reusable key based on a cryptographic value that is also known by the owner. To establish secure communications to the owner through multiple receivers, the reusable key acts as a public key for the decryption performed by the second receiver. Additionally, the reusable key acts as a public key for the encryption performed by the first receiver. In this sense, the first receiver and the second receiver are piggybacking on the cryptographic value generated by the transmitter. This piggybacking enables a first message to be transmitted by the agent with a single group element. With the single group element, the first message can be readily transmitted using wireless communication technologies with relatively small message sizes, such as Bluetooth™ low energy, without using fragmentation.