Abstract
Hash-lock authentication protocols for Radio Frequency IDentification (RFID) tags incur heavy search on the server. Key-trees have been proposed as a way to reduce search times, but because partial keys in such trees are shared, key compromise affects several tags. Buttyán [4] and Beye and Veugen [3] devised trees to withstand such attacks, but assumed adversaries to be non-adaptive, without access to side-channel information. We illustrate how in practice, side-channel information can be used to attack the system. We also describe adaptive attacks that are easy to mount and will significantly reduce tag anonymity. Theoretical analysis of the implications on anonymity in key-trees leads to new requirements and a new tree construction. Simulation is used to test its performance, the results showing an improved resistance to adaptive attacks.
Part of this research was performed at TNO for a master’s thesis for the University of Utrecht (UU). Special thanks go to Gerard Tel (UU) for his advice, and to Harry Fluks (TNO) for his work on the simulation code.
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© 2012 ICST Institute for Computer Science, Social Informatics and Telecommunications Engineering
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Beye, M., Veugen, T. (2012). Anonymity for Key-Trees with Adaptive Adversaries. In: Rajarajan, M., Piper, F., Wang, H., Kesidis, G. (eds) Security and Privacy in Communication Networks. SecureComm 2011. Lecture Notes of the Institute for Computer Sciences, Social Informatics and Telecommunications Engineering, vol 96. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-31909-9_23
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-31909-9_23
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