2. Message Authentication
• message authentication is concerned with:
• protecting the integrity of a message
• validating identity of originator
• non-repudiation of origin (dispute resolution)
• will consider the security requirements
• then three alternative functions used:
• hash function (see Ch 11)
• message encryption
• message authentication code (MAC)
3. Message Authentication Codes
• as shown the MAC provides authentication
• can also use encryption for secrecy
• generally use separate keys for each
• can compute MAC either before or after encryption
• is generally regarded as better done before
• why use a MAC?
• sometimes only authentication is needed
• sometimes need authentication to persist longer than the encryption (eg.
archival use)
• note that a MAC is not a digital signature
Editor's Notes
#2:One of the most fascinating and complex areas of cryptography is that of message authentication and the related area of digital signatures. We now consider how to protect message integrity (ie protection from modification), as well as confirming the identity of the sender. Generically this is the problem of message authentication, and in eCommerce applications is arguably more important than secrecy. Message Authentication is concerned with: protecting the integrity of a message, validating identity of originator, & non-repudiation of origin (dispute resolution). There are three types of functions that may be used to produce an authenticator: a hash function, message encryption, message authentication code (MAC). Hash functions, and how they may serve for message authentication, are discussed in Chapter 11. The remainder of this section briefly examines the remaining two topics. The remainder of the chapter elaborates on the topic of MACs.
#3:The process depicted on the previous slide provides authentication but not confidentiality, because the message as a whole is transmitted in the clear. Confidentiality can be provided by performing message encryption either after (see Stallings Figure 12.4b) or before (see Stallings Figure 12.4c) the MAC algorithm. In both these cases, two separate keys are needed, each of which is shared by the sender and the receiver. Typically, it is preferable to tie the authentication directly to the plaintext, so the method of Figure 12.4b is used. Can use MAC in circumstances where just authentication is needed (or needs to be kept), see text for examples (e.g. such as when the same message is broadcast to a number of destinations; when one side has a heavy load and cannot afford the time to decrypt all incoming messages; or do not need to keep messages secret, but must authenticate messages). Finally, note that the MAC does not provide a digital signature because both sender and receiver share the same key.
