Impact of Network Topology on Anonymity and Overhead in Low-Latency Anonymity Networks

Abstract

Low-latency anonymous communication networks require padding to resist timing analysis attacks, and dependent link padding has been proven to prevent these attacks with minimal overhead. In this paper we consider low-latency anonymity networks that implement dependent link padding, and examine various network topologies. We find that the choice of the topology has an important influence on the padding overhead and the level of anonymity provided, and that Stratified networks offer the best trade-off between them. We show that fully connected network topologies (Free Routes) are impractical when dependent link padding is used, as they suffer from feedback effects that induce disproportionate amounts of padding; and that Cascade topologies have the lowest padding overhead at the cost of poor scalability with respect to anonymity. Furthermore, we propose an variant of dependent link padding that considerably reduces the overhead at no loss in anonymity with respect to external adversaries. Finally, we discuss how Tor, a deployed large-scale anonymity network, would need to be adapted to support dependent link padding.