On the performance of using Covert Timing Channels for node authentication

Abstract

AbstractAuthentication over a network is an important and difficult problem. Accurately determining the authenticity of a node or user is critical in maintaining the security of a network. Our proposed technique covertly embeds a watermark, or identifying tag, within a data stream. By implementing this model on a LAN, WLAN, and VPN connection we show that this method is easily adaptable to a variety of networking technologies, and easily scalable. While our technique increases the time required for data to be transferred, we show that the throughput of the link during the brief authentication window is decreased by no more than 8 percent in a switched LAN, 11 percent in a WLAN, and 9 percent in a VPN. During our empirical analysis we were able to detect the watermark with 100 percent accuracy in a LAN, WLAN, and VPN environment. We also investigate the detectability of the covert channel, and show that this method produces a relatively stealthy covert channel. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.