Secure distributed applications: a case study

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Secure distributed applicationsa case study
Italian Networking Workshop

• Luca Maria Aiello, Federica Cesano, Marco
  Milanesio, Giancarlo Ruffo, Rossano Schifanella

Speaker Luca Maria Aiello SecNet
Group Dipartimento di Informatica, Università
degli Studi di Torino Corso Svizzera, 185
10149, Torino, Italy aiello_at_di.unito.it
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Motivations

• In distributed identity-based commercial
  applications, user data are retained by central
  servers.
• Secure infrastructure
• Loss of user privacy

• Exploiting DHT systems for data storage could
  preserve privacy
• Respect of user data secrecy
• Infrastructure prone to common attacks

• Our contribution
• Likir a secure p2p middleware
• LiCha the first Likir application, is a
  demonstrative Likir service

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Likir
Layered Identity-based Kademlia-like
InfRastructure

• A novel DHT layer
• Identity user identity management at middleware
  level
• Security
• Protection against known overlay attacks (Routing
  poisoning,
• Sybil attack, MITM, Pollution)

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Likir architecture

• Many other attempts to secure overlay networks
• Myrmic
• KadSec
• Maelstrom
• By introducing a strong binding between user ID
  and node ID, Likir solves (or effectively
  mitigates) DHT security problems

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Likir protocol
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Likir

• Other good features
• No Single Point Of Failure
• No additional system constraints (e.g. clock
  synchronization)
• Likir middleware is transparent to application
  developers
• Ease of developement and integration of id-based
  applications
• Limited computational overhead respect to
  Kademlia
• Simple API

• Possible enhancements
• Replace RSA with IBS

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LiCha
The Likir Chat

• Fully distributed IM application
• User data stored in the DHT
• Personal data are encrypted before being stored
• Every content is signed by Likir layer

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How LiCha works
Password
Find(cedric.myopenid.com)
Cedric
Dynaer
TCP
Hi!
Application
LiCha
Contact
Personal info
Get(cedric.myopenid.com)
Lookup(UDP)
Overlay net
Likir
ID
Store
DHT storage
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A possible future?
Likir becomes an ideal framework for privacy
aware social networks

• Security
• Identity
• Privacy
• Scalability

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Contacts and Credits
To get Likir/Licha code, or to contact us
http//likir.di.unito.it likir_at_di.unito.it aiello_at_
di.unito.it
We would thank Edoardo Rossi, cooperated with us
for Licha developement Elton Kola, built Likir
registration portal with OpenID verification
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Thank you!