[Docs] [txt|pdf|xml|html] [Tracker] [WG] [Email] [Diff1] [Diff2] [Nits]
Versions: (draft-stebila-tls-hybrid-design)
00 01 02
Network Working Group D. Stebila
Internet-Draft University of Waterloo
Intended status: Informational S. Fluhrer
Expires: 16 October 2021 Cisco Systems
S. Gueron
U. Haifa, Amazon Web Services
14 April 2021
Hybrid key exchange in TLS 1.3
draft-ietf-tls-hybrid-design-02
Abstract
Hybrid key exchange refers to using multiple key exchange algorithms
simultaneously and combining the result with the goal of providing
security even if all but one of the component algorithms is broken.
It is motivated by transition to post-quantum cryptography. This
document provides a construction for hybrid key exchange in the
Transport Layer Security (TLS) protocol version 1.3.
Discussion of this work is encouraged to happen on the TLS IETF
mailing list tls@ietf.org or on the GitHub repository which contains
the draft: https://github.com/dstebila/draft-ietf-tls-hybrid-design.
Status of This Memo
This Internet-Draft is submitted in full conformance with the
provisions of BCP 78 and BCP 79.
Internet-Drafts are working documents of the Internet Engineering
Task Force (IETF). Note that other groups may also distribute
working documents as Internet-Drafts. The list of current Internet-
Drafts is at https://datatracker.ietf.org/drafts/current/.
Internet-Drafts are draft documents valid for a maximum of six months
and may be updated, replaced, or obsoleted by other documents at any
time. It is inappropriate to use Internet-Drafts as reference
material or to cite them other than as "work in progress."
This Internet-Draft will expire on 16 October 2021.
Copyright Notice
Copyright (c) 2021 IETF Trust and the persons identified as the
document authors. All rights reserved.
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 1]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
This document is subject to BCP 78 and the IETF Trust's Legal
Provisions Relating to IETF Documents (https://trustee.ietf.org/
license-info) in effect on the date of publication of this document.
Please review these documents carefully, as they describe your rights
and restrictions with respect to this document. Code Components
extracted from this document must include Simplified BSD License text
as described in Section 4.e of the Trust Legal Provisions and are
provided without warranty as described in the Simplified BSD License.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.1. Revision history . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.2. Terminology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
1.3. Motivation for use of hybrid key exchange . . . . . . . . 5
1.4. Scope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
1.5. Goals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
2. Key encapsulation mechanisms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
3. Construction for hybrid key exchange . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
3.1. Negotiation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
3.2. Transmitting public keys and ciphertexts . . . . . . . . 10
3.3. Shared secret calculation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
4. Open questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
5. IANA Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
6. Security Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
7. Acknowledgements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
8. References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
8.1. Normative References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
8.2. Informative References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Appendix A. Related work . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Appendix B. Design Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
B.1. (Neg) How to negotiate hybridization and component
algorithms? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
B.1.1. Key exchange negotiation in TLS 1.3 . . . . . . . . . 23
B.1.2. (Neg-Ind) Negotiating component algorithms
individually . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
B.1.3. (Neg-Comb) Negotiating component algorithms as a
combination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
B.1.4. Benefits and drawbacks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
B.2. (Num) How many component algorithms to combine? . . . . . 26
B.2.1. (Num-2) Two . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
B.2.2. (Num-2+) Two or more . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
B.2.3. Benefits and Drawbacks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
B.3. (Shares) How to convey key shares? . . . . . . . . . . . 26
B.3.1. (Shares-Concat) Concatenate key shares . . . . . . . 26
B.3.2. (Shares-Multiple) Send multiple key shares . . . . . 27
B.3.3. (Shares-Ext-Additional) Extension carrying additional
key shares . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 2]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
B.3.4. Benefits and Drawbacks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
B.4. (Comb) How to use keys? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
B.4.1. (Comb-Concat) Concatenate keys . . . . . . . . . . . 28
B.4.2. (Comb-KDF-1) KDF keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
B.4.3. (Comb-KDF-2) KDF keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
B.4.4. (Comb-XOR) XOR keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
B.4.5. (Comb-Chain) Chain of KDF applications for each
key . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
B.4.6. (Comb-AltInput) Second shared secret in an alternate
KDF input . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
B.4.7. Benefits and Drawbacks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Authors' Addresses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
1. Introduction
This document gives a construction for hybrid key exchange in TLS
1.3. The overall design approach is a simple, "concatenation"-based
approach: each hybrid key exchange combination should be viewed as a
single new key exchange method, negotiated and transmitted using the
existing TLS 1.3 mechanisms.
This document does not propose specific post-quantum mechanisms; see
Section 1.4 for more on the scope of this document.
1.1. Revision history
*RFC Editor's Note:* Please remove this section prior to
publication of a final version of this document.
Earlier versions of this document categorized various design
decisions one could make when implementing hybrid key exchange in TLS
1.3. These have been moved to the appendix of the current draft, and
will be eventually be removed.
* draft-ietf-tls-hybrid-design-02:
- Bump to version -02 to avoid expiry
* draft-ietf-tls-hybrid-design-01:
- Forbid variable-length secret keys
- Use fixed-length KEM public keys/ciphertexts
* draft-ietf-tls-hybrid-design-00:
- Allow key_exchange values from the same algorithm to be reused
across multiple KeyShareEntry records in the same ClientHello.
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 3]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
* draft-stebila-tls-hybrid-design-03:
- Add requirement for KEMs to provide protection against key
reuse.
- Clarify FIPS-compliance of shared secret concatenation method.
* draft-stebila-tls-hybrid-design-02:
- Design considerations from draft-stebila-tls-hybrid-design-00
and draft-stebila-tls-hybrid-design-01 are moved to the
appendix.
- A single construction is given in the main body.
* draft-stebila-tls-hybrid-design-01:
- Add (Comb-KDF-1) (Appendix B.4.2) and (Comb-KDF-2)
(Appendix B.4.3) options.
- Add two candidate instantiations.
* draft-stebila-tls-hybrid-design-00: Initial version.
1.2. Terminology
For the purposes of this document, it is helpful to be able to divide
cryptographic algorithms into two classes:
* "Traditional" algorithms: Algorithms which are widely deployed
today, but which may be deprecated in the future. In the context
of TLS 1.3 in 2019, examples of traditional key exchange
algorithms include elliptic curve Diffie-Hellman using secp256r1
or x25519, or finite-field Diffie-Hellman.
* "Next-generation" (or "next-gen") algorithms: Algorithms which are
not yet widely deployed, but which may eventually be widely
deployed. An additional facet of these algorithms may be that we
have less confidence in their security due to them being
relatively new or less studied. This includes "post-quantum"
algorithms.
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 4]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
"Hybrid" key exchange, in this context, means the use of two (or
more) key exchange algorithms based on different cryptographic
assumptions, e.g., one traditional algorithm and one next-gen
algorithm, with the purpose of the final session key being secure as
long as at least one of the component key exchange algorithms remains
unbroken. We use the term "component" algorithms to refer to the
algorithms combined in a hybrid key exchange.
The primary motivation of this document is preparing for post-quantum
algorithms. However, it is possible that public key cryptography
based on alternative mathematical constructions will be required
independent of the advent of a quantum computer, for example because
of a cryptanalytic breakthrough. As such we opt for the more generic
term "next-generation" algorithms rather than exclusively "post-
quantum" algorithms.
Note that TLS 1.3 uses the phrase "groups" to refer to key exchange
algorithms - for example, the "supported_groups" extension - since
all key exchange algorithms in TLS 1.3 are Diffie-Hellman-based. As
a result, some parts of this document will refer to data structures
or messages with the term "group" in them despite using a key
exchange algorithm that is not Diffie-Hellman-based nor a group.
1.3. Motivation for use of hybrid key exchange
A hybrid key exchange algorithm allows early adopters eager for post-
quantum security to have the potential of post-quantum security
(possibly from a less-well-studied algorithm) while still retaining
at least the security currently offered by traditional algorithms.
They may even need to retain traditional algorithms due to regulatory
constraints, for example FIPS compliance.
Ideally, one would not use hybrid key exchange: one would have
confidence in a single algorithm and parameterization that will stand
the test of time. However, this may not be the case in the face of
quantum computers and cryptanalytic advances more generally.
Many (though not all) post-quantum algorithms currently under
consideration are relatively new; they have not been subject to the
same depth of study as RSA and finite-field or elliptic curve Diffie-
Hellman, and thus the security community does not necessarily have as
much confidence in their fundamental security, or the concrete
security level of specific parameterizations.
Moreover, it is possible that even by the end of the NIST Post-
Quantum Cryptography Standardization Project, and for a period of
time thereafter, conservative users may not have full confidence in
some algorithms.
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 5]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
As such, there may be users for whom hybrid key exchange is an
appropriate step prior to an eventual transition to next-generation
algorithms.
1.4. Scope
This document focuses on hybrid ephemeral key exchange in TLS 1.3
[TLS13]. It intentionally does not address:
* Selecting which next-generation algorithms to use in TLS 1.3, nor
algorithm identifiers nor encoding mechanisms for next-generation
algorithms. This selection will be based on the recommendations
by the Crypto Forum Research Group (CFRG), which is currently
waiting for the results of the NIST Post-Quantum Cryptography
Standardization Project [NIST].
* Authentication using next-generation algorithms. If a
cryptographic assumption is broken due to the advent of a quantum
computer or some other cryptanalytic breakthrough, confidentiality
of information can be broken retroactively by any adversary who
has passively recorded handshakes and encrypted communications.
In contrast, session authentication cannot be retroactively
broken.
1.5. Goals
The primary goal of a hybrid key exchange mechanism is to facilitate
the establishment of a shared secret which remains secure as long as
as one of the component key exchange mechanisms remains unbroken.
In addition to the primary cryptographic goal, there may be several
additional goals in the context of TLS 1.3:
* *Backwards compatibility:* Clients and servers who are "hybrid-
aware", i.e., compliant with whatever hybrid key exchange standard
is developed for TLS, should remain compatible with endpoints and
middle-boxes that are not hybrid-aware. The three scenarios to
consider are:
1. Hybrid-aware client, hybrid-aware server: These parties should
establish a hybrid shared secret.
2. Hybrid-aware client, non-hybrid-aware server: These parties
should establish a traditional shared secret (assuming the
hybrid-aware client is willing to downgrade to traditional-
only).
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 6]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
3. Non-hybrid-aware client, hybrid-aware server: These parties
should establish a traditional shared secret (assuming the
hybrid-aware server is willing to downgrade to traditional-
only).
Ideally backwards compatibility should be achieved without extra
round trips and without sending duplicate information; see below.
* *High performance:* Use of hybrid key exchange should not be
prohibitively expensive in terms of computational performance. In
general this will depend on the performance characteristics of the
specific cryptographic algorithms used, and as such is outside the
scope of this document. See [BCNS15], [CECPQ1], [FRODO] for
preliminary results about performance characteristics.
* *Low latency:* Use of hybrid key exchange should not substantially
increase the latency experienced to establish a connection.
Factors affecting this may include the following.
- The computational performance characteristics of the specific
algorithms used. See above.
- The size of messages to be transmitted. Public key and
ciphertext sizes for post-quantum algorithms range from
hundreds of bytes to over one hundred kilobytes, so this impact
can be substantial. See [BCNS15], [FRODO] for preliminary
results in a laboratory setting, and [LANGLEY] for preliminary
results on more realistic networks.
- Additional round trips added to the protocol. See below.
* *No extra round trips:* Attempting to negotiate hybrid key
exchange should not lead to extra round trips in any of the three
hybrid-aware/non-hybrid-aware scenarios listed above.
* *Minimal duplicate information:* Attempting to negotiate hybrid
key exchange should not mean having to send multiple public keys
of the same type.
2. Key encapsulation mechanisms
In the context of the NIST Post-Quantum Cryptography Standardization
Project, key exchange algorithms are formulated as key encapsulation
mechanisms (KEMs), which consist of three algorithms:
* "KeyGen() -> (pk, sk)": A probabilistic key generation algorithm,
which generates a public key "pk" and a secret key "sk".
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 7]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
* "Encaps(pk) -> (ct, ss)": A probabilistic encapsulation algorithm,
which takes as input a public key "pk" and outputs a ciphertext
"ct" and shared secret "ss".
* "Decaps(sk, ct) -> ss": A decapsulation algorithm, which takes as
input a secret key "sk" and ciphertext "ct" and outputs a shared
secret "ss", or in some cases a distinguished error value.
The main security property for KEMs is indistinguishability under
adaptive chosen ciphertext attack (IND-CCA2), which means that shared
secret values should be indistinguishable from random strings even
given the ability to have arbitrary ciphertexts decapsulated. IND-
CCA2 corresponds to security against an active attacker, and the
public key / secret key pair can be treated as a long-term key or
reused. A common design pattern for obtaining security under key
reuse is to apply the Fujisaki-Okamoto (FO) transform [FO] or a
variant thereof [HHK].
A weaker security notion is indistinguishability under chosen
plaintext attack (IND-CPA), which means that the shared secret values
should be indistinguishable from random strings given a copy of the
public key. IND-CPA roughly corresponds to security against a
passive attacker, and sometimes corresponds to one-time key exchange.
Key exchange in TLS 1.3 is phrased in terms of Diffie-Hellman key
exchange in a group. DH key exchange can be modeled as a KEM, with
"KeyGen" corresponding to selecting an exponent "x" as the secret key
and computing the public key "g^x"; encapsulation corresponding to
selecting an exponent "y", computing the ciphertext "g^y" and the
shared secret "g^(xy)", and decapsulation as computing the shared
secret "g^(xy)". See [I-D.irtf-cfrg-hpke] for more details of such
Diffie-Hellman-based key encapsulation mechanisms.
TLS 1.3 does not require that ephemeral public keys be used only in a
single key exchange session; some implementations may reuse them, at
the cost of limited forward secrecy. As a result, any KEM used in
the manner described in this document MUST explicitly be designed to
be secure in the event that the public key is re-used, such as
achieving IND-CCA2 security or having a transform like the Fujisaki-
Okamoto transform [FO] [HHK] applied. While it is recommended that
implementations avoid reuse of KEM public keys, implementations that
do reuse KEM public keys MUST ensure that the number of reuses of a
KEM public key abides by any bounds in the specification of the KEM
or subsequent security analyses. Implementations MUST NOT reuse
randomness in the generation of KEM ciphertexts.
3. Construction for hybrid key exchange
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 8]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
3.1. Negotiation
Each particular combination of algorithms in a hybrid key exchange
will be represented as a "NamedGroup" and sent in the
"supported_groups" extension. No internal structure or grammar is
implied or required in the value of the identifier; they are simply
opaque identifiers.
Each value representing a hybrid key exchange will correspond to an
ordered pair of two algorithms. For example, a future document could
specify that hybrid value 0x2000 corresponds to
secp256r1+ntruhrss701, and 0x2001 corresponds to x25519+ntruhrss701.
(We note that this is independent from future documents standardizing
solely post-quantum key exchange methods, which would have to be
assigned their own identifier.)
Specific values shall be standardized by IANA in the TLS Supported
Groups registry. We suggest that values 0x2000 through 0x2EFF are
suitable for hybrid key exchange methods (the leading "2" suggesting
that there are 2 algorithms), noting that 0x2A2A is reserved as a
GREASE value [GREASE]. This document requests that values 0x2F00
through 0x2FFF be reserved for Private Use for hybrid key exchange.
enum {
/* Elliptic Curve Groups (ECDHE) */
secp256r1(0x0017), secp384r1(0x0018), secp521r1(0x0019),
x25519(0x001D), x448(0x001E),
/* Finite Field Groups (DHE) */
ffdhe2048(0x0100), ffdhe3072(0x0101), ffdhe4096(0x0102),
ffdhe6144(0x0103), ffdhe8192(0x0104),
/* Hybrid Key Exchange Methods */
TBD(0xTBD), ...,
/* Reserved Code Points */
ffdhe_private_use(0x01FC..0x01FF),
hybrid_private_use(0x2F00..0x2FFF),
ecdhe_private_use(0xFE00..0xFEFF),
(0xFFFF)
} NamedGroup;
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 9]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
3.2. Transmitting public keys and ciphertexts
We take the relatively simple "concatenation approach": the messages
from the two algorithms being hybridized will be concatenated
together and transmitted as a single value, to avoid having to change
existing data structures. The values are directly concatenated,
without any additional encoding or length fields; this assumes that
the representation and length of elements is fixed once the algorithm
is fixed.
Recall that in TLS 1.3 a KEM public key or KEM ciphertext is
represented as a "KeyShareEntry":
struct {
NamedGroup group;
opaque key_exchange<1..2^16-1>;
} KeyShareEntry;
These are transmitted in the "extension_data" fields of
"KeyShareClientHello" and "KeyShareServerHello" extensions:
struct {
KeyShareEntry client_shares<0..2^16-1>;
} KeyShareClientHello;
struct {
KeyShareEntry server_share;
} KeyShareServerHello;
The client's shares are listed in descending order of client
preference; the server selects one algorithm and sends its
corresponding share.
For a hybrid key exchange, the "key_exchange" field of a
"KeyShareEntry" is the concatenation of the "key_exchange" field for
each of the constituent algorithms. The order of shares in the
concatenation is the same as the order of algorithms indicated in the
definition of the "NamedGroup".
For the client's share, the "key_exchange" are the "pk" outputs of
the corresponding KEMs' "KeyGen" algorithms, if that algorithm
corresponds to a KEM; or the (EC)DH ephemeral key share, if that
algorithm corresponds to an (EC)DH group. For the server's share,
the "key_exchange" values are the "ct" outputs of the corresponding
KEMs' "Encaps" algorithms, if that algorithm corresponds to a KEM; or
the (EC)DH ephemeral key share, if that algorithm corresponds to an
(EC)DH group.
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 10]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
[TLS13] requires that ``The key_exchange values for each
KeyShareEntry MUST be generated independently.'' In the context of
this document, since the same algorithm may appear in multiple named
groups, we relax the above requirement to allow the same key_exchange
value for the same algorithm to be reused in multiple KeyShareEntry
records sent in within the same "ClientHello". However, the
key_exchange values for each algorithm MUST be generated
independently.
3.3. Shared secret calculation
Here we also take a simple "concatenation approach": the two shared
secrets are concatenated together and used as the shared secret in
the existing TLS 1.3 key schedule. Again, we do not add any
additional structure (length fields) in the concatenation procedure:
among all Round 3 finalists and alternate candidates, once the
algorithm and variant are specified, the shared secret output length
is fixed.
In other words, the shared secret is calculated as
concatenated_shared_secret = shared_secret_1 || shared_secret_2
and inserted into the TLS 1.3 key schedule in place of the (EC)DHE
shared secret:
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 11]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
0
|
v
PSK -> HKDF-Extract = Early Secret
|
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
|
v
Derive-Secret(., "derived", "")
|
v
concatenated_shared_secret -> HKDF-Extract = Handshake Secret
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ |
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
|
v
Derive-Secret(., "derived", "")
|
v
0 -> HKDF-Extract = Master Secret
|
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
*FIPS-compliance of shared secret concatenation.* [NIST-SP-800-56C]
or [NIST-SP-800-135] give NIST recommendations for key derivation
methods in key exchange protocols. Some hybrid combinations may
combine the shared secret from a NIST-approved algorithm (e.g., ECDH
using the nistp256/secp256r1 curve) with a shared secret from a non-
approved algorithm (e.g., post-quantum). [NIST-SP-800-56C] lists
simple concatenation as an approved method for generation of a hybrid
shared secret in which one of the constituent shared secret is from
an approved method.
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 12]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
4. Open questions
*Larger public keys and/or ciphertexts.* The "HybridKeyExchange"
struct in Section 3.2 limits public keys and ciphertexts to 2^16-1
bytes; this is bounded by the same (2^16-1)-byte limit on the
"key_exchange" field in the "KeyShareEntry" struct. Some post-
quantum KEMs have larger public keys and/or ciphertexts; for example,
Classic McEliece's smallest parameter set has public key size 261,120
bytes. Hence this draft can not accommodate all current NIST Round 2
candidates.
If it is desired to accommodate algorithms with public keys or
ciphertexts larger than 2^16-1 bytes, options include a) revising the
TLS 1.3 standard to allow longer "key_exchange" fields; b) creating
an alternative extension which is sufficiently large; or c) providing
a reference to an external public key, e.g. a URL at which to look up
the public key (along with a hash to verify).
*Duplication of key shares.* Concatenation of public keys in the
"HybridKeyExchange" struct as described in Section 3.2 can result in
sending duplicate key shares. For example, if a client wanted to
offer support for two combinations, say "secp256r1+sikep503" and
"x25519+sikep503", it would end up sending two sikep503 public keys,
since the "KeyShareEntry" for each combination contains its own copy
of a sikep503 key. This duplication may be more problematic for
post-quantum algorithms which have larger public keys.
If it is desired to avoid duplication of key shares, options include
a) disconnect the use of a combination for the algorithm identifier
from the use of concatenation of public keys by introducing new logic
and/or data structures (see Appendix B.3.2 or Appendix B.3.3); or b)
provide some back reference from a later key share entry to an
earlier one.
*Resumption.* TLS 1.3 allows for session resumption via a PSK. When
a PSK is used during session establishment, an ephemeral key exchange
can also be used to enhance forward secrecy. If the original key
exchange was hybrid, should an ephemeral key exchange in a resumption
of that original key exchange be required to use the same hybrid
algorithms?
*Failures.* Some post-quantum key exchange algorithms have non-
trivial failure rates: two honest parties may fail to agree on the
same shared secret with non-negligible probability. Does a non-
negligible failure rate affect the security of TLS? How should such
a failure be treated operationally? What is an acceptable failure
rate?
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 13]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
5. IANA Considerations
Identifiers for specific key exchange algorithm combinations will be
defined in later documents. This document requests IANA reserve
values 0x2F00..0x2FFF in the TLS Supported Groups registry for
private use for hybrid key exchange methods.
6. Security Considerations
The shared secrets computed in the hybrid key exchange should be
computed in a way that achieves the "hybrid" property: the resulting
secret is secure as long as at least one of the component key
exchange algorithms is unbroken. See [GIACON] and [BINDEL] for an
investigation of these issues. Under the assumption that shared
secrets are fixed length once the combination is fixed, the
construction from Section 3.3 corresponds to the dual-PRF combiner of
[BINDEL] which is shown to preserve security under the assumption
that the hash function is a dual-PRF.
As noted in Section 2, KEMs used in the manner described in this
document MUST explicitly be designed to be secure in the event that
the public key is re-used, such as achieving IND-CCA2 security or
having a transform like the Fujisaki-Okamoto transform applied. Some
IND-CPA-secure post-quantum KEMs (i.e., without countermeasures such
as the FO transform) are completely insecure under public key reuse;
for example, some lattice-based IND-CPA-secure KEMs are vulnerable to
attacks that recover the private key after just a few thousand
samples [FLUHRER].
*Public keys, ciphertexts, and secrets should be constant length.*
This document assumes that the length of each public key, ciphertext,
and shared secret is fixed once the algorithm is fixed. This is the
case for all Round 3 finalists and alternate candidates.
Note that variable-length secrets are, generally speaking, dangerous.
In particular, when using key material of variable length and
processing it using hash functions, a timing side channel may arise.
In broad terms, when the secret is longer, the hash function may need
to process more blocks internally. In some unfortunate
circumstances, this has led to timing attacks, e.g. the Lucky
Thirteen [LUCKY13] and Raccoon [RACCOON] attacks.
Therefore, this specification MUST only be used with algorithms which
have fixed-length shared secrets (after the variant has been fixed by
the algorithm identifier in the "NamedGroup" negotiation in
Section 3.1).
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 14]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
7. Acknowledgements
These ideas have grown from discussions with many colleagues,
including Christopher Wood, Matt Campagna, Eric Crockett, authors of
the various hybrid Internet-Drafts and implementations cited in this
document, and members of the TLS working group. The immediate
impetus for this document came from discussions with attendees at the
Workshop on Post-Quantum Software in Mountain View, California, in
January 2019. Martin Thomson suggested the (Comb-KDF-1)
(Appendix B.4.2) approach. Daniel J. Bernstein and Tanja Lange
commented on the risks of reuse of ephemeral public keys. Matt
Campagna and the team at Amazon Web Services provided additional
suggestions. Nimrod Aviram proposed restricting to fixed-length
secrets.
8. References
8.1. Normative References
[TLS13] Rescorla, E., "The Transport Layer Security (TLS) Protocol
Version 1.3", RFC 8446, DOI 10.17487/RFC8446, August 2018,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc8446>.
8.2. Informative References
[BCNS15] Bos, J., Costello, C., Naehrig, M., and D. Stebila, "Post-
Quantum Key Exchange for the TLS Protocol from the Ring
Learning with Errors Problem", 2015 IEEE Symposium on
Security and Privacy, DOI 10.1109/sp.2015.40, May 2015,
<https://doi.org/10.1109/sp.2015.40>.
[BERNSTEIN]
"Post-Quantum Cryptography", Springer Berlin
Heidelberg book, DOI 10.1007/978-3-540-88702-7, 2009,
<https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-88702-7>.
[BINDEL] Bindel, N., Brendel, J., Fischlin, M., Goncalves, B., and
D. Stebila, "Hybrid Key Encapsulation Mechanisms and
Authenticated Key Exchange", Post-Quantum Cryptography pp.
206-226, DOI 10.1007/978-3-030-25510-7_12, 2019,
<https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-25510-7_12>.
[CAMPAGNA] Campagna, M. and E. Crockett, "Hybrid Post-Quantum Key
Encapsulation Methods (PQ KEM) for Transport Layer
Security 1.2 (TLS)", Work in Progress, Internet-Draft,
draft-campagna-tls-bike-sike-hybrid-06, 9 March 2021,
<https://www.ietf.org/archive/id/draft-campagna-tls-bike-
sike-hybrid-06.txt>.
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 15]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
[CECPQ1] Braithwaite, M., "Experimenting with Post-Quantum
Cryptography", 7 July 2016,
<https://security.googleblog.com/2016/07/experimenting-
with-post-quantum.html>.
[CECPQ2] Langley, A., "CECPQ2", 12 December 2018,
<https://www.imperialviolet.org/2018/12/12/cecpq2.html>.
[DODIS] Dodis, Y. and J. Katz, "Chosen-Ciphertext Security of
Multiple Encryption", Theory of Cryptography pp. 188-209,
DOI 10.1007/978-3-540-30576-7_11, 2005,
<https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-30576-7_11>.
[ETSI] Campagna, M., Ed. and . others, "Quantum safe cryptography
and security: An introduction, benefits, enablers and
challengers", ETSI White Paper No. 8 , June 2015,
<https://www.etsi.org/images/files/ETSIWhitePapers/
QuantumSafeWhitepaper.pdf>.
[EVEN] Even, S. and O. Goldreich, "On the Power of Cascade
Ciphers", Advances in Cryptology pp. 43-50,
DOI 10.1007/978-1-4684-4730-9_4, 1984,
<https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4684-4730-9_4>.
[EXTERN-PSK]
Housley, R., "TLS 1.3 Extension for Certificate-Based
Authentication with an External Pre-Shared Key", RFC 8773,
DOI 10.17487/RFC8773, March 2020,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc8773>.
[FLUHRER] Fluhrer, S., "Cryptanalysis of ring-LWE based key exchange
with key share reuse", Cryptology ePrint Archive, Report
2016/085 , January 2016,
<https://eprint.iacr.org/2016/085>.
[FO] Fujisaki, E. and T. Okamoto, "Secure Integration of
Asymmetric and Symmetric Encryption Schemes", Journal of
Cryptology Vol. 26, pp. 80-101,
DOI 10.1007/s00145-011-9114-1, December 2011,
<https://doi.org/10.1007/s00145-011-9114-1>.
[FRODO] Bos, J., Costello, C., Ducas, L., Mironov, I., Naehrig,
M., Nikolaenko, V., Raghunathan, A., and D. Stebila,
"Frodo: Take off the Ring! Practical, Quantum-Secure Key
Exchange from LWE", Proceedings of the 2016 ACM SIGSAC
Conference on Computer and Communications Security,
DOI 10.1145/2976749.2978425, October 2016,
<https://doi.org/10.1145/2976749.2978425>.
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 16]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
[GIACON] Giacon, F., Heuer, F., and B. Poettering, "KEM Combiners",
Public-Key Cryptography - PKC 2018 pp. 190-218,
DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-76578-5_7, 2018,
<https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-76578-5_7>.
[GREASE] Benjamin, D., "Applying Generate Random Extensions And
Sustain Extensibility (GREASE) to TLS Extensibility",
RFC 8701, DOI 10.17487/RFC8701, January 2020,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc8701>.
[HARNIK] Harnik, D., Kilian, J., Naor, M., Reingold, O., and A.
Rosen, "On Robust Combiners for Oblivious Transfer and
Other Primitives", Lecture Notes in Computer Science pp.
96-113, DOI 10.1007/11426639_6, 2005,
<https://doi.org/10.1007/11426639_6>.
[HHK] Hofheinz, D., Hövelmanns, K., and E. Kiltz, "A Modular
Analysis of the Fujisaki-Okamoto Transformation", Theory
of Cryptography pp. 341-371,
DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-70500-2_12, 2017,
<https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-70500-2_12>.
[HOFFMAN] Hoffman, P., "The Transition from Classical to Post-
Quantum Cryptography", Work in Progress, Internet-Draft,
draft-hoffman-c2pq-07, 26 May 2020,
<https://www.ietf.org/archive/id/draft-hoffman-c2pq-
07.txt>.
[I-D.irtf-cfrg-hpke]
Barnes, R. L., Bhargavan, K., Lipp, B., and C. A. Wood,
"Hybrid Public Key Encryption", Work in Progress,
Internet-Draft, draft-irtf-cfrg-hpke-08, 15 February 2021,
<https://www.ietf.org/archive/id/draft-irtf-cfrg-hpke-
08.txt>.
[IKE-HYBRID]
Tjhai, C., Tomlinson, M., Bartlett, G., Fluhrer, S.,
Geest, D. V., Garcia-Morchon, O., and V. Smyslov,
"Framework to Integrate Post-quantum Key Exchanges into
Internet Key Exchange Protocol Version 2 (IKEv2)", Work in
Progress, Internet-Draft, draft-tjhai-ipsecme-hybrid-qske-
ikev2-04, 9 July 2019, <https://www.ietf.org/archive/id/
draft-tjhai-ipsecme-hybrid-qske-ikev2-04.txt>.
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 17]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
[IKE-PSK] Fluhrer, S., Kampanakis, P., McGrew, D., and V. Smyslov,
"Mixing Preshared Keys in the Internet Key Exchange
Protocol Version 2 (IKEv2) for Post-quantum Security",
RFC 8784, DOI 10.17487/RFC8784, June 2020,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc8784>.
[KIEFER] Kiefer, F. and K. Kwiatkowski, "Hybrid ECDHE-SIDH Key
Exchange for TLS", Work in Progress, Internet-Draft,
draft-kiefer-tls-ecdhe-sidh-00, 5 November 2018,
<https://www.ietf.org/archive/id/draft-kiefer-tls-ecdhe-
sidh-00.txt>.
[LANGLEY] Langley, A., "Post-quantum confidentiality for TLS", 11
April 2018, <https://www.imperialviolet.org/2018/04/11/
pqconftls.html>.
[LUCKY13] Al Fardan, N.J. and K.G. Paterson, "Lucky Thirteen:
Breaking the TLS and DTLS record protocols", n.d.,
<https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/
iel7/6547086/6547088/06547131.pdf>.
[NIELSEN] Nielsen, M.A. and I.L. Chuang, "Quantum Computation and
Quantum Information", Cambridge University Press , 2000.
[NIST] National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST),
"Post-Quantum Cryptography", n.d.,
<https://www.nist.gov/pqcrypto>.
[NIST-SP-800-135]
National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST),
"Recommendation for Existing Application-Specific Key
Derivation Functions", December 2011,
<https://doi.org/10.6028/NIST.SP.800-135r1>.
[NIST-SP-800-56C]
National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST),
"Recommendation for Key-Derivation Methods in Key-
Establishment Schemes", August 2020,
<https://doi.org/10.6028/NIST.SP.800-56Cr2>.
[OQS-102] Open Quantum Safe Project, "OQS-OpenSSL-1-0-2_stable",
November 2018, <https://github.com/open-quantum-
safe/openssl/tree/OQS-OpenSSL_1_0_2-stable>.
[OQS-111] Open Quantum Safe Project, "OQS-OpenSSL-1-1-1_stable",
November 2018, <https://github.com/open-quantum-
safe/openssl/tree/OQS-OpenSSL_1_1_1-stable>.
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 18]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
[RACCOON] Merget, R., Brinkmann, M., Aviram, N., Somorovsky, J.,
Mittmann, J., and J. Schwenk, "Raccoon Attack: Finding and
Exploiting Most-Significant-Bit-Oracles in TLS-DH(E)",
September 2020, <https://raccoon-attack.com/>.
[S2N] Amazon Web Services, "Post-quantum TLS now supported in
AWS KMS", 4 November 2019,
<https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/security/post-quantum-tls-
now-supported-in-aws-kms/>.
[SCHANCK] Schanck, J. M. and D. Stebila, "A Transport Layer Security
(TLS) Extension For Establishing An Additional Shared
Secret", Work in Progress, Internet-Draft, draft-schanck-
tls-additional-keyshare-00, 17 April 2017,
<https://www.ietf.org/archive/id/draft-schanck-tls-
additional-keyshare-00.txt>.
[WHYTE12] Schanck, J. M., Whyte, W., and Z. Zhang, "Quantum-Safe
Hybrid (QSH) Ciphersuite for Transport Layer Security
(TLS) version 1.2", Work in Progress, Internet-Draft,
draft-whyte-qsh-tls12-02, 22 July 2016,
<https://www.ietf.org/archive/id/draft-whyte-qsh-
tls12-02.txt>.
[WHYTE13] Whyte, W., Zhang, Z., Fluhrer, S., and O. Garcia-Morchon,
"Quantum-Safe Hybrid (QSH) Key Exchange for Transport
Layer Security (TLS) version 1.3", Work in Progress,
Internet-Draft, draft-whyte-qsh-tls13-06, 3 October 2017,
<https://www.ietf.org/archive/id/draft-whyte-qsh-
tls13-06.txt>.
[XMSS] Huelsing, A., Butin, D., Gazdag, S., Rijneveld, J., and A.
Mohaisen, "XMSS: eXtended Merkle Signature Scheme",
RFC 8391, DOI 10.17487/RFC8391, May 2018,
<https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc8391>.
[ZHANG] Zhang, R., Hanaoka, G., Shikata, J., and H. Imai, "On the
Security of Multiple Encryption or CCA-security+CCA-
security=CCA-security?", Public Key Cryptography - PKC
2004 pp. 360-374, DOI 10.1007/978-3-540-24632-9_26, 2004,
<https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-24632-9_26>.
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 19]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
Appendix A. Related work
Quantum computing and post-quantum cryptography in general are
outside the scope of this document. For a general introduction to
quantum computing, see a standard textbook such as [NIELSEN]. For an
overview of post-quantum cryptography as of 2009, see [BERNSTEIN].
For the current status of the NIST Post-Quantum Cryptography
Standardization Project, see [NIST]. For additional perspectives on
the general transition from classical to post-quantum cryptography,
see for example [ETSI] and [HOFFMAN], among others.
There have been several Internet-Drafts describing mechanisms for
embedding post-quantum and/or hybrid key exchange in TLS:
* Internet-Drafts for TLS 1.2: [WHYTE12], [CAMPAGNA]
* Internet-Drafts for TLS 1.3: [KIEFER], [SCHANCK], [WHYTE13]
There have been several prototype implementations for post-quantum
and/or hybrid key exchange in TLS:
* Experimental implementations in TLS 1.2: [BCNS15], [CECPQ1],
[FRODO], [OQS-102], [S2N]
* Experimental implementations in TLS 1.3: [CECPQ2], [OQS-111]
These experimental implementations have taken an ad hoc approach and
not attempted to implement one of the drafts listed above.
Unrelated to post-quantum but still related to the issue of combining
multiple types of keying material in TLS is the use of pre-shared
keys, especially the recent TLS working group document on including
an external pre-shared key [EXTERN-PSK].
Considering other IETF standards, there is work on post-quantum
preshared keys in IKEv2 [IKE-PSK] and a framework for hybrid key
exchange in IKEv2 [IKE-HYBRID]. The XMSS hash-based signature scheme
has been published as an informational RFC by the IRTF [XMSS].
In the academic literature, [EVEN] initiated the study of combining
multiple symmetric encryption schemes; [ZHANG], [DODIS], and [HARNIK]
examined combining multiple public key encryption schemes, and
[HARNIK] coined the term "robust combiner" to refer to a compiler
that constructs a hybrid scheme from individual schemes while
preserving security properties. [GIACON] and [BINDEL] examined
combining multiple key encapsulation mechanisms.
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 20]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
Appendix B. Design Considerations
This appendix discusses choices one could make along four distinct
axes when integrating hybrid key exchange into TLS 1.3:
1. How to negotiate the use of hybridization in general and
component algorithms specifically?
2. How many component algorithms can be combined?
3. How should multiple key shares (public keys / ciphertexts) be
conveyed?
4. How should multiple shared secrets be combined?
The construction in the main body illustrates one selection along
each of these axes. The remainder of this appendix outlines various
options we have identified for each of these choices. Immediately
below we provide a summary list. Options are labelled with a short
code in parentheses to provide easy cross-referencing.
1. (Neg) (Appendix B.1) How to negotiate the use of hybridization in
general and component algorithms specifically?
* (Neg-Ind) (Appendix B.1.2) Negotiating component algorithms
individually
- (Neg-Ind-1) (Appendix B.1.2.1) Traditional algorithms in
"ClientHello" "supported_groups" extension, next-gen
algorithms in another extension
- (Neg-Ind-2) (Appendix B.1.2.2) Both types of algorithms in
"supported_groups" with external mapping to tradition/next-
gen.
- (Neg-Ind-3) (Appendix B.1.2.3) Both types of algorithms in
"supported_groups" separated by a delimiter.
* (Neg-Comb) (Appendix B.1.3) Negotiating component algorithms
as a combination
- (Neg-Comb-1) (Appendix B.1.3.1) Standardize "NamedGroup"
identifiers for each desired combination.
- (Neg-Comb-2) (Appendix B.1.3.2) Use placeholder identifiers
in "supported_groups" with an extension defining the
combination corresponding to each placeholder.
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 21]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
- (Neg-Comb-3) (Appendix B.1.3.3) List combinations by
inserting grouping delimiters into "supported_groups" list.
2. (Num) (Appendix B.2) How many component algorithms can be
combined?
* (Num-2) (Appendix B.2.1) Two.
* (Num-2+) (Appendix B.2.2) Two or more.
3. (Shares) (Appendix B.3) How should multiple key shares (public
keys / ciphertexts) be conveyed?
* (Shares-Concat) (Appendix B.3.1) Concatenate each combination
of key shares.
* (Shares-Multiple) (Appendix B.3.2) Send individual key shares
for each algorithm.
* (Shares-Ext-Additional) (Appendix B.3.3) Use an extension to
convey key shares for component algorithms.
4. (Comb) (Appendix B.4) How should multiple shared secrets be
combined?
* (Comb-Concat) (Appendix B.4.1) Concatenate the shared secrets
then use directly in the TLS 1.3 key schedule.
* (Comb-KDF-1) (Appendix B.4.2) and (Comb-KDF-2)
(Appendix B.4.3) KDF the shared secrets together, then use the
output in the TLS 1.3 key schedule.
* (Comb-XOR) (Appendix B.4.4) XOR the shared secrets then use
directly in the TLS 1.3 key schedule.
* (Comb-Chain) (Appendix B.4.5) Extend the TLS 1.3 key schedule
so that there is a stage of the key schedule for each shared
secret.
* (Comb-AltInput) (Appendix B.4.6) Use the second shared secret
in an alternate (otherwise unused) input in the TLS 1.3 key
schedule.
B.1. (Neg) How to negotiate hybridization and component algorithms?
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 22]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
B.1.1. Key exchange negotiation in TLS 1.3
Recall that in TLS 1.3, the key exchange mechanism is negotiated via
the "supported_groups" extension. The "NamedGroup" enum is a list of
standardized groups for Diffie-Hellman key exchange, such as
"secp256r1", "x25519", and "ffdhe2048".
The client, in its "ClientHello" message, lists its supported
mechanisms in the "supported_groups" extension. The client also
optionally includes the public key of one or more of these groups in
the "key_share" extension as a guess of which mechanisms the server
might accept in hopes of reducing the number of round trips.
If the server is willing to use one of the client's requested
mechanisms, it responds with a "key_share" extension containing its
public key for the desired mechanism.
If the server is not willing to use any of the client's requested
mechanisms, the server responds with a "HelloRetryRequest" message
that includes an extension indicating its preferred mechanism.
B.1.2. (Neg-Ind) Negotiating component algorithms individually
In these three approaches, the parties negotiate which traditional
algorithm and which next-gen algorithm to use independently. The
"NamedGroup" enum is extended to include algorithm identifiers for
each next-gen algorithm.
B.1.2.1. (Neg-Ind-1)
The client advertises two lists to the server: one list containing
its supported traditional mechanisms (e.g. via the existing
"ClientHello" "supported_groups" extension), and a second list
containing its supported next-generation mechanisms (e.g., via an
additional "ClientHello" extension). A server could then select one
algorithm from the traditional list, and one algorithm from the next-
generation list. (This is the approach in [SCHANCK].)
B.1.2.2. (Neg-Ind-2)
The client advertises a single list to the server which contains both
its traditional and next-generation mechanisms (e.g., all in the
existing "ClientHello" "supported_groups" extension), but with some
external table provides a standardized mapping of those mechanisms as
either "traditional" or "next-generation". A server could then
select two algorithms from this list, one from each category.
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 23]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
B.1.2.3. (Neg-Ind-3)
The client advertises a single list to the server delimited into
sublists: one for its traditional mechanisms and one for its next-
generation mechanisms, all in the existing "ClientHello"
"supported_groups" extension, with a special code point serving as a
delimiter between the two lists. For example, "supported_groups =
secp256r1, x25519, delimiter, nextgen1, nextgen4".
B.1.3. (Neg-Comb) Negotiating component algorithms as a combination
In these three approaches, combinations of key exchange mechanisms
appear as a single monolithic block; the parties negotiate which of
several combinations they wish to use.
B.1.3.1. (Neg-Comb-1)
The "NamedGroup" enum is extended to include algorithm identifiers
for each *combination* of algorithms desired by the working group.
There is no "internal structure" to the algorithm identifiers for
each combination, they are simply new code points assigned
arbitrarily. The client includes any desired combinations in its
"ClientHello" "supported_groups" list, and the server picks one of
these. This is the approach in [KIEFER] and [OQS-111].
B.1.3.2. (Neg-Comb-2)
The "NamedGroup" enum is extended to include algorithm identifiers
for each next-gen algorithm. Some additional field/extension is used
to convey which combinations the parties wish to use. For example,
in [WHYTE13], there are distinguished "NamedGroup" called
"hybrid_marker 0", "hybrid_marker 1", "hybrid_marker 2", etc. This
is complemented by a "HybridExtension" which contains mappings for
each numbered "hybrid_marker" to the set of component key exchange
algorithms (2 or more) for that proposed combination.
B.1.3.3. (Neg-Comb-3)
The client lists combinations in "supported_groups" list, using a
special delimiter to indicate combinations. For example,
"supported_groups = combo_delimiter, secp256r1, nextgen1,
combo_delimiter, secp256r1, nextgen4, standalone_delimiter,
secp256r1, x25519" would indicate that the client's highest
preference is the combination secp256r1+nextgen1, the next highest
preference is the combination secp2561+nextgen4, then the single
algorithm secp256r1, then the single algorithm x25519. A hybrid-
aware server would be able to parse these; a hybrid-unaware server
would see "unknown, secp256r1, unknown, unknown, secp256r1, unknown,
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 24]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
unknown, secp256r1, x25519", which it would be able to process,
although there is the potential that every "projection" of a hybrid
list that is tolerable to a client does not result in list that is
tolerable to the client.
B.1.4. Benefits and drawbacks
*Combinatorial explosion.* (Neg-Comb-1) (Appendix B.1.3.1) requires
new identifiers to be defined for each desired combination. The
other 4 options in this section do not.
*Extensions.* (Neg-Ind-1) (Appendix B.1.2.1) and (Neg-Comb-2)
(Appendix B.1.3.2) require new extensions to be defined. The other
options in this section do not.
*New logic.* All options in this section except (Neg-Comb-1)
(Appendix B.1.3.1) require new logic to process negotiation.
*Matching security levels.* (Neg-Ind-1) (Appendix B.1.2.1),
(Neg-Ind-2) (Appendix B.1.2.2), (Neg-Ind-3) (Appendix B.1.2.3), and
(Neg-Comb-2) (Appendix B.1.3.2) allow algorithms of different claimed
security level from their corresponding lists to be combined. For
example, this could result in combining ECDH secp256r1 (classical
security level 128) with NewHope-1024 (classical security level 256).
Implementations dissatisfied with a mismatched security levels must
either accept this mismatch or attempt to renegotiate. (Neg-Ind-1)
(Appendix B.1.2.1), (Neg-Ind-2) (Appendix B.1.2.2), and (Neg-Ind-3)
(Appendix B.1.2.3) give control over the combination to the server;
(Neg-Comb-2) (Appendix B.1.3.2) gives control over the combination to
the client. (Neg-Comb-1) (Appendix B.1.3.1) only allows standardized
combinations, which could be set by TLS working group to have
matching security (provided security estimates do not evolve
separately).
*Backwards-compability.* TLS 1.3-compliant hybrid-unaware servers
should ignore unreocgnized elements in "supported_groups" (Neg-Ind-2)
(Appendix B.1.2.2), (Neg-Ind-3) (Appendix B.1.2.3), (Neg-Comb-1)
(Appendix B.1.3.1), (Neg-Comb-2) (Appendix B.1.3.2) and unrecognized
"ClientHello" extensions (Neg-Ind-1) (Appendix B.1.2.1), (Neg-Comb-2)
(Appendix B.1.3.2). In (Neg-Ind-3) (Appendix B.1.2.3) and
(Neg-Comb-3) (Appendix B.1.3.3), a server that is hybrid-unaware will
ignore the delimiters in "supported_groups", and thus might try to
negotiate an algorithm individually that is only meant to be used in
combination; depending on how such an implementation is coded, it may
also encounter bugs when the same element appears multiple times in
the list.
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 25]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
B.2. (Num) How many component algorithms to combine?
B.2.1. (Num-2) Two
Exactly two algorithms can be combined together in hybrid key
exchange. This is the approach taken in [KIEFER] and [SCHANCK].
B.2.2. (Num-2+) Two or more
Two or more algorithms can be combined together in hybrid key
exchange. This is the approach taken in [WHYTE13].
B.2.3. Benefits and Drawbacks
Restricting the number of component algorithms that can be hybridized
to two substantially reduces the generality required. On the other
hand, some adopters may want to further reduce risk by employing
multiple next-gen algorithms built on different cryptographic
assumptions.
B.3. (Shares) How to convey key shares?
In ECDH ephmeral key exchange, the client sends its ephmeral public
key in the "key_share" extension of the "ClientHello" message, and
the server sends its ephmeral public key in the "key_share" extension
of the "ServerHello" message.
For a general key encapsulation mechanism used for ephemeral key
exchange, we imagine that that client generates a fresh KEM public
key / secret pair for each connection, sends it to the client, and
the server responds with a KEM ciphertext. For simplicity and
consistency with TLS 1.3 terminology, we will refer to both of these
types of objects as "key shares".
In hybrid key exchange, we have to decide how to convey the client's
two (or more) key shares, and the server's two (or more) key shares.
B.3.1. (Shares-Concat) Concatenate key shares
The client concatenates the bytes representing its two key shares and
uses this directly as the "key_exchange" value in a "KeyShareEntry"
in its "key_share" extension. The server does the same thing. Note
that the "key_exchange" value can be an octet string of length at
most 2^16-1. This is the approach taken in [KIEFER], [OQS-111], and
[WHYTE13].
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 26]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
B.3.2. (Shares-Multiple) Send multiple key shares
The client sends multiple key shares directly in the "client_shares"
vectors of the "ClientHello" "key_share" extension. The server does
the same. (Note that while the existing "KeyShareClientHello" struct
allows for multiple key share entries, the existing
"KeyShareServerHello" only permits a single key share entry, so some
modification would be required to use this approach for the server to
send multiple key shares.)
B.3.3. (Shares-Ext-Additional) Extension carrying additional key shares
The client sends the key share for its traditional algorithm in the
original "key_share" extension of the "ClientHello" message, and the
key share for its next-gen algorithm in some additional extension in
the "ClientHello" message. The server does the same thing. This is
the approach taken in [SCHANCK].
B.3.4. Benefits and Drawbacks
*Backwards compatibility.* (Shares-Multiple) (Appendix B.3.2) is
fully backwards compatible with non-hybrid-aware servers.
(Shares-Ext-Additional) (Appendix B.3.3) is backwards compatible with
non-hybrid-aware servers provided they ignore unrecognized
extensions. (Shares-Concat) (Appendix B.3.1) is backwards-compatible
with non-hybrid aware servers, but may result in duplication /
additional round trips (see below).
*Duplication versus additional round trips.* If a client wants to
offer multiple key shares for multiple combinations in order to avoid
retry requests, then the client may ended up sending a key share for
one algorithm multiple times when using (Shares-Ext-Additional)
(Appendix B.3.3) and (Shares-Concat) (Appendix B.3.1). (For example,
if the client wants to send an ECDH-secp256r1 + McEliece123 key
share, and an ECDH-secp256r1 + NewHope1024 key share, then the same
ECDH public key may be sent twice. If the client also wants to offer
a traditional ECDH-only key share for non-hybrid-aware
implementations and avoid retry requests, then that same ECDH public
key may be sent another time.) (Shares-Multiple) (Appendix B.3.2)
does not result in duplicate key shares.
B.4. (Comb) How to use keys?
Each component key exchange algorithm establishes a shared secret.
These shared secrets must be combined in some way that achieves the
"hybrid" property: the resulting secret is secure as long as at least
one of the component key exchange algorithms is unbroken.
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 27]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
B.4.1. (Comb-Concat) Concatenate keys
Each party concatenates the shared secrets established by each
component algorithm in an agreed-upon order, then feeds that through
the TLS key schedule. In the context of TLS 1.3, this would mean
using the concatenated shared secret in place of the (EC)DHE input to
the second call to "HKDF-Extract" in the TLS 1.3 key schedule:
0
|
v
PSK -> HKDF-Extract = Early Secret
|
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
|
v
Derive-Secret(., "derived", "")
|
v
concatenated_shared_secret -> HKDF-Extract = Handshake Secret
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ |
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
|
v
Derive-Secret(., "derived", "")
|
v
0 -> HKDF-Extract = Master Secret
|
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
This is the approach used in [KIEFER], [OQS-111], and [WHYTE13].
[GIACON] analyzes the security of applying a KDF to concatenated KEM
shared secrets, but their analysis does not exactly apply here since
the transcript of ciphertexts is included in the KDF application
(though it should follow relatively straightforwardly).
[BINDEL] analyzes the security of the (Comb-Concat) approach as
abstracted in their "dualPRF" combiner. They show that, if the
component KEMs are IND-CPA-secure (or IND-CCA-secure), then the
values output by "Derive-Secret" are IND-CPA-secure (respectively,
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 28]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
IND-CCA-secure). An important aspect of their analysis is that each
ciphertext is input to the final PRF calls; this holds for TLS 1.3
since the "Derive-Secret" calls that derive output keys (application
traffic secrets, and exporter and resumption master secrets) include
the transcript hash as input.
B.4.2. (Comb-KDF-1) KDF keys
Each party feeds the shared secrets established by each component
algorithm in an agreed-upon order into a KDF, then feeds that through
the TLS key schedule. In the context of TLS 1.3, this would mean
first applying "HKDF-Extract" to the shared secrets, then using the
output in place of the (EC)DHE input to the second call to "HKDF-
Extract" in the TLS 1.3 key schedule:
0
|
v
PSK -> HKDF-Extract = Early Secret
|
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
Next-Gen |
| v
(EC)DHE -> HKDF-Extract Derive-Secret(., "derived", "")
| |
v v
output -----> HKDF-Extract = Handshake Secret
^^^^^^ |
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
|
v
Derive-Secret(., "derived", "")
|
v
0 -> HKDF-Extract = Master Secret
|
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 29]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
B.4.3. (Comb-KDF-2) KDF keys
Each party concatenates the shared secrets established by each
component algorithm in an agreed-upon order then feeds that into a
KDF, then feeds the result through the TLS key schedule.
Compared with (Comb-KDF-1) (Appendix B.4.2), this method concatenates
the (2 or more) shared secrets prior to input to the KDF, whereas
(Comb-KDF-1) puts the (exactly 2) shared secrets in the two different
input slots to the KDF.
Compared with (Comb-Concat) (Appendix B.4.1), this method has an
extract KDF application. While this adds computational overhead,
this may provide a cleaner abstraction of the hybridization mechanism
for the purposes of formal security analysis.
0
|
v
PSK -> HKDF-Extract = Early Secret
|
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
|
v
concatenated 0
shared |
secret -> HKDF-Extract Derive-Secret(., "derived", "")
^^^^^^ | |
v v
output -----> HKDF-Extract = Handshake Secret
^^^^^^ |
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
|
v
Derive-Secret(., "derived", "")
|
v
0 -> HKDF-Extract = Master Secret
|
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 30]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
B.4.4. (Comb-XOR) XOR keys
Each party XORs the shared secrets established by each component
algorithm (possibly after padding secrets of different lengths), then
feeds that through the TLS key schedule. In the context of TLS 1.3,
this would mean using the XORed shared secret in place of the (EC)DHE
input to the second call to "HKDF-Extract" in the TLS 1.3 key
schedule.
[GIACON] analyzes the security of applying a KDF to the XORed KEM
shared secrets, but their analysis does not quite apply here since
the transcript of ciphertexts is included in the KDF application
(though it should follow relatively straightforwardly).
B.4.5. (Comb-Chain) Chain of KDF applications for each key
Each party applies a chain of key derivation functions to the shared
secrets established by each component algorithm in an agreed-upon
order; roughly speaking: "F(k1 || F(k2))". In the context of TLS
1.3, this would mean extending the key schedule to have one round of
the key schedule applied for each component algorithm's shared
secret:
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 31]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
0
|
v
PSK -> HKDF-Extract = Early Secret
|
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
|
v
Derive-Secret(., "derived", "")
|
v
traditional_shared_secret -> HKDF-Extract
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ |
Derive-Secret(., "derived", "")
|
v
next_gen_shared_secret -> HKDF-Extract = Handshake Secret
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ |
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
|
v
Derive-Secret(., "derived", "")
|
v
0 -> HKDF-Extract = Master Secret
|
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
This is the approach used in [SCHANCK].
[BINDEL] analyzes the security of this approach as abstracted in
their nested dual-PRF "N" combiner, showing a similar result as for
the dualPRF combiner that it preserves IND-CPA (or IND-CCA) security.
Again their analysis depends on each ciphertext being input to the
final PRF ("Derive-Secret") calls, which holds for TLS 1.3.
B.4.6. (Comb-AltInput) Second shared secret in an alternate KDF input
In the context of TLS 1.3, the next-generation shared secret is used
in place of a currently unused input in the TLS 1.3 key schedule,
namely replacing the "0" "IKM" input to the final "HKDF-Extract":
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 32]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
0
|
v
PSK -> HKDF-Extract = Early Secret
|
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
|
v
Derive-Secret(., "derived", "")
|
v
traditional_shared_secret -> HKDF-Extract = Handshake Secret
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ |
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
|
v
Derive-Secret(., "derived", "")
|
v
next_gen_shared_secret -> HKDF-Extract = Master Secret
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ |
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
+-----> Derive-Secret(...)
This approach is not taken in any of the known post-quantum/hybrid
TLS drafts. However, it bears some similarities to the approach for
using external PSKs in [EXTERN-PSK].
B.4.7. Benefits and Drawbacks
*New logic.* While (Comb-Concat) (Appendix B.4.1), (Comb-KDF-1)
(Appendix B.4.2), and (Comb-KDF-2) (Appendix B.4.3) require new logic
to compute the concatenated shared secret, this value can then be
used by the TLS 1.3 key schedule without changes to the key schedule
logic. In contrast, (Comb-Chain) (Appendix B.4.5) requires the TLS
1.3 key schedule to be extended for each extra component algorithm.
*Philosophical.* The TLS 1.3 key schedule already applies a new stage
for different types of keying material (PSK versus (EC)DHE), so
(Comb-Chain) (Appendix B.4.5) continues that approach.
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 33]
Internet-Draft ietf-tls-hybrid-design April 2021
*Efficiency.* (Comb-KDF-1) (Appendix B.4.2), (Comb-KDF-2)
(Appendix B.4.3), and (Comb-Chain) (Appendix B.4.5) increase the
number of KDF applications for each component algorithm, whereas
(Comb-Concat) (Appendix B.4.1) and (Comb-AltInput) (Appendix B.4.6)
keep the number of KDF applications the same (though with potentially
longer inputs).
*Extensibility.* (Comb-AltInput) (Appendix B.4.6) changes the use of
an existing input, which might conflict with other future changes to
the use of the input.
*More than 2 component algorithms.* The techniques in (Comb-Concat)
(Appendix B.4.1) and (Comb-Chain) (Appendix B.4.5) can naturally
accommodate more than 2 component shared secrets since there is no
distinction to how each shared secret is treated. (Comb-AltInput)
(Appendix B.4.6) would have to make some distinct, since the 2
component shared secrets are used in different ways; for example, the
first shared secret is used as the "IKM" input in the 2nd "HKDF-
Extract" call, and all subsequent shared secrets are concatenated to
be used as the "IKM" input in the 3rd "HKDF-Extract" call.
Authors' Addresses
Douglas Stebila
University of Waterloo
Email: dstebila@uwaterloo.ca
Scott Fluhrer
Cisco Systems
Email: sfluhrer@cisco.com
Shay Gueron
University of Haifa and Amazon Web Services
Email: shay.gueron@gmail.com
Stebila, et al. Expires 16 October 2021 [Page 34]
Html markup produced by rfcmarkup 1.129d, available from
https://tools.ietf.org/tools/rfcmarkup/