Split Private Key Generation for Secure Asymmetric Authentication
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing cryptosystems face challenges in providing robust access control and security due to issues such as single-point compromise of password storage, Man-In-The-Middle attacks, and the inefficiency of asymmetric key systems, leading to vulnerabilities in password transmission and storage.
Innovation Solution
A multifactor asymmetric crypto-key system is introduced, where a public key and a split private key are used, with multiple factors under user control, including a password and cryptographic keys, to generate a private portion for secure authentication and encryption, utilizing a password-based key derivation algorithm and hash functions to ensure secure key generation and verification.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If passwords are stored on the computer in a table, then access control is simplified and users can log on easily, but the system becomes vulnerable to single-point compromise where stealing the password table grants access to every user's account
Solution Approach 1:
The private key is segmented into multiple portions, with different portions stored in different locations (user's computer and sponsor's computer). This segmentation eliminates the single-point compromise vulnerability because an attacker would need to compromise multiple separate storage locations simultaneously to obtain the complete private key.
2Ease of operation
If passwords are transmitted from terminal to computer in clear text, then authentication is simple, but the system becomes vulnerable to Man-In-The-Middle attacks where eavesdroppers can intercept and potentially modify communications
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary cryptographic operations during the login process. The user's computer generates a challenge response using the private key portion stored locally, and the sponsor's computer verifies this response using the corresponding public key. This preliminary cryptographic action ensures that no sensitive information is transmitted in clear text, preventing Man-In-The-Middle attacks.
3Reliability
If asymmetric key systems are used for security, then password transmission and storage vulnerabilities are reduced, but the system becomes less efficient due to the computational complexity of asymmetric cryptography
Solution Approach 1:
The private key is divided into portions, with only a portion stored on the user's computer and the remainder on the sponsor's computer. This segmentation allows the system to use asymmetric cryptography for security while reducing the computational burden on the user's device, as only key generation and partial verification operations are performed locally.
Solution Approach 2:
The sponsor's computer acts as an intermediary that performs the computationally intensive asymmetric cryptographic operations. The sponsor's computer stores the remaining private key portion and performs the heavy lifting of cryptographic verification, allowing the user's computer to operate more efficiently with lighter computational requirements.
Data Source
AI summary
Techniques for generating a private portion of a split private key of an asymmetric key pair are provided. Multiple factors upon which the private portion of the split private key is based are received. Each of these multiple factors is under control of a user associated with the asymmetric key pair. Multiple cryptographic operations are then performed using the received multiple factors to generate the private portion.