Policy-Driven SSL Certificate Validation for Clientless VPN
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing systems lack a fine-grained policy-driven mechanism for validating SSL certificates in clientless SSL VPN access, which can lead to security vulnerabilities, especially when accessing resources through potentially untrusted servers hosted on the internet.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a policy-driven mechanism for SSL certificate validation using an intermediary device that specifies CA certificates and rules for validating server SSL certificates, ensuring secure access by matching domain names and checking certificate signatures and expiry.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If SSL certificate validation is performed for all servers in clientless SSL VPN access, then security against rogue servers is improved, but system complexity and processing overhead increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by implementing fine-grained SSL certificate validation policies that can be selectively applied to different servers, server groups, or URL patterns. Instead of uniformly validating all servers, the system allows administrators to specify which servers require validation and which do not, based on their security requirements and trust levels. This resolves the contradiction by maintaining high security where needed while reducing complexity elsewhere.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the SSL certificate validation process into multiple components: policy definition, certificate verification, and enforcement. The validation mechanism is divided into configurable policy rules that can be independently managed. This segmentation allows the system to handle validation selectively for different servers, reducing overall system complexity while maintaining security for critical resources.
2Reliability
If fine-grained policy driven SSL certificate validation is implemented, then security control over sensitive information is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a universal policy framework that can handle multiple validation scenarios through a single configurable system. The same intermediary device and policy mechanism can validate certificates for individual servers, groups of servers, or entire domains, and can integrate with existing VPN infrastructure. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate validation mechanisms for different security requirements, managing complexity through consolidation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary device that acts as a mediator between clients and servers, handling SSL certificate validation centrally. This intermediary captures VPN traffic, performs policy-based certificate validation, and enforces security decisions without requiring changes to clients or servers. By centralizing the complex validation logic in an intermediary component, the system achieves fine-grained security control while isolating complexity to a single manageable point.
3Measurement precision
If SSL certificate validation is performed using multiple CA certificate files, then validation accuracy is improved, but processing time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-configuring and caching multiple Certificate Authority (CA) certificate files in the intermediary device before validation is needed. The system maintains an updated repository of trusted CA certificates, so when SSL certificate validation is required, the intermediary can quickly compare server certificates against the pre-loaded CA list without performing time-consuming real-time verification. This resolves the contradiction by preparing validation data in advance.
Data Source
AI summary
The present disclosure is directed towards systems and methods for validation of a secure socket layer (SSL) certificate of a server for clientless SSL virtual private network (VPN) access. An intermediary device can receive a first request from a client for a clientless SSL VPN connection to a first server. The intermediary device can determine, using a preconfigured policy, that the first server in the first request meets a condition of the preconfigured policy. The intermediary device 801 can perform, responsive to the determination, an action to validate a SSL certificate of the first server using one or more certificate authority (CA) certificate files available to the intermediary device. The one or more CA certificate files can be specified by the preconfigured policy for the action.