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Cryptographic Security Characteristics of 802.11 Wireless LAN Access Systems
draft-orr-wlan-security-architectures-00

Document Type Active Internet-Draft (individual)
Authors Stephen Orr , Anthony Grieco , Dan Harkins
Last updated 2018-07-11 (Latest revision 2012-10-15)
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draft-orr-wlan-security-architectures-00
Network Working Group                                             S. Orr
Internet-Draft                                                 A. Grieco
Intended status: Informational                       Cisco Systems, Inc.
Expires: April 18, 2013                                       D. Harkins
                                                          Aruba Networks
                                                        October 15, 2012

  Cryptographic Security Characteristics of 802.11 Wireless LAN Access
                                Systems
                draft-orr-wlan-security-architectures-00

Abstract

   This note identifies all of the places that cryptography is used in
   Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) architectures, to simplify the
   task of selecting the protocols, algorithms, and key sizes needed to
   achieve a consistent security level across the entire architecture.

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
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   material or to cite them other than as "work in progress."

   This Internet-Draft will expire on April 18, 2013.

Copyright Notice

   Copyright (c) 2012 IETF Trust and the persons identified as the
   document authors.  All rights reserved.

   This document is subject to BCP 78 and the IETF Trust's Legal
   Provisions Relating to IETF Documents
   (http://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

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   the Trust Legal Provisions and are provided without warranty as
   described in the Simplified BSD License.

Table of Contents

   1.  Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  3
   2.  Conventions Used In This Document  . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  4
   3.  Architectures  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  5
     3.1.  Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  5
     3.2.  Standalone WLAS  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  5
     3.3.  Centralized WLAS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  5
     3.4.  Architectural Commonality  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  6
   4.  WTP to Access Controller Service Cryptographic Security  . . .  7
   5.  Client to AAA Service Cryptographic Security . . . . . . . . .  8
     5.1.  EAP Method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  8
     5.2.  Pre Shared Key, or Password, Method  . . . . . . . . . . .  8
   6.  Authenticator to AAA Service Cryptographic Security  . . . . .  9
   7.  Wireless Link Layer Cryptographic Security . . . . . . . . . . 10
   8.  Cryptographic profiles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
     8.1.  DTLS and TLS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
     8.2.  X.509 Certificates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
     8.3.  Link Layer Encryption  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
     8.4.  AAA  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
     8.5.  IPSEC  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
   9.  Security Considerations  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
     9.1.  Algorithm Choices  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
   10. IANA Considerations  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
   11. Acknowledgements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
   12. References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
     12.1. Normative References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
     12.2. Informative References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
   Authors' Addresses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

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1.  Introduction

   Wireless LAN Access Systems (WLAS) are complex systems that involve
   interworking many technology components defined by various standards
   bodies.  To ensure that the entire system is secure against
   sophisticated, persistent, and well-funded adversaries, each
   component MUST use strong cryptography.  However, the architectural-
   level cryptographic capabilities and relationships between the
   various protocols and security mechanisms provide by each of the WLAS
   architecture components have not been documented.

   In this note, we define a series of architectures based on common
   wireless LAN standards; IEEE 802.11 [IEEE.802-11.2012], Control and
   Provisioning of Wireless Access Points [RFC5415], RADIUS [RFC2865],
   IEEE 802.1x [IEEE.802-1X.2010], and the Extensible Authentication
   Protocol [RFC5247].  Within each of these architectures, we describe
   the uses of cryptography and in doing so, we capture an overall
   understanding of the cryptographic security of the Wireless LAN
   Access Systems.  This document can also serve as a framework for
   future specifications to define profiles that specify particular
   cryptographic algorithms at each area of the architecture creating
   detailed specifications for interoperability with well understood
   cryptographic security properties.

   This document does not define new protocols, nor cryptographic
   algorithms.

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2.  Conventions Used In This Document

   The key words "MUST", "MUST NOT", "REQUIRED", "SHALL", "SHALL NOT",
   "SHOULD", "SHOULD NOT", "RECOMMENDED", "MAY", and "OPTIONAL" in this
   document are to be interpreted as described in [RFC2119].

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3.  Architectures

3.1.  Overview

   The Wireless LAN Access System (WLAS) architectures discussed in this
   document describe host/user and network authentication, over the air
   security, as well as various methods for managing the backend
   processes to support that wireless LAN access system.  These backend
   processes include both distributed as well as non-distributed
   infrastructures for doing access control, authentication and Radio-
   Frequency management.

3.2.  Standalone WLAS

   The Standalone WLAS consist of a Wireless Termination Point (WTP or
   Access Point) and a client.  The client contains an IEEE 802.1x
   [IEEE.802-1X.2010] supplicant and the client side of an EAP method
   [RFC3748].  The WTP contains an IEEE 802.1x [IEEE.802-1X.2010]
   authenticator.  An Authentication, Authorization and Accounting
   Service (AAA), which incorporates the server side of at least one EAP
   method [RFC3748], resides either on the WTP or as a stand-alone
   server.  This architecture is commonly deployed in small scale
   environments such as consumer and commercial deployments, or in
   places where backend resources are not available to provide a more
   distributed architecture.  If 802.1x authentication is not deployed
   then 802.11 SAE authentication SHOULD be used for secure
   authentication using a pre-shared key or password.

                client(s)        WTP            AAA Service

                   |-------------(1)----------------|
                                  |-------(2)-------|
                   |------(3)-----|

                  Figure 1: Standalone WLAS Architecture

   Each of the lines in Figure 1 denotes communication that MUST be
   secured.  The numbers are defined in (Section 3.4).  This notation is
   used throughout this note.

3.3.  Centralized WLAS

   The Centralized WLAS is similar to the Standalone AP architecture
   with the addition of an Access Controller (AC) to manage the
   collection of WTP's.  By moving the IEEE 802.1x [IEEE.802-1X.2010]
   authenticator off the WTPs and centralizing it on the Access
   Controller, this architecture allows for large scale deployments of

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   secure wireless infrastructure.  As with Section 3.2 the AAA service
   can be incorporated on the AC or reside on a stand-alone server.
   This architecture supports [RFC5415] for control and provisioning of
   wireless access points (CAPWAP).

      client(s)        WTP          Access Controller     AAA Service

                        |-------(4)--------|
          |------------------------(1)-------------------------|
                                           |-------(2)---------|
          |----(3a)------| or
          |------------(3b)-----------------|

                  Figure 2: Centralized WLAS Architecture

3.4.  Architectural Commonality

   In each of the above architectures, there are necessary services that
   we will describe in more details in the sections below. (1) describes
   authentication and authorization communications that occurs between
   the client and the AAA service in the form of an EAP method. (2)
   describes additional communications that occurs in support of EAP, as
   well as distribution of other keying material via the AAA service.
   (3a) and (3b) describe the cryptographic security applied to
   [IEEE.802-11.2012] frames.  In (3a), the frames are terminated on the
   WTP; in (3b) the frames are terminated on the AC. (4) Describes the
   authentication and cryptography security between the WTP and the
   access controller.

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4.  WTP to Access Controller Service Cryptographic Security

   Specific to the Centralized WLAS Architecture is the establishment of
   a secure channel between the WTP and the AC.  This command channel
   MUST be secured to insure both confidentiality and integrity of the
   communication between the AC and the WTP.  The IETF has defined
   CAPWAP [RFC5415] to communicate between the WTP and the AC but there
   are other, proprietary, tunneling protocols to perform the same task.
   However, standards based security protocols such as DTLS, TLS or
   IPSEC MUST provide the authenticity and integrity assurance for
   securing any tunneling or encapsulation mechanism.

   There are two channels between the WTP and AC that need security--
   the command and control channel; and, the data channel.  Through the
   command and control channel, the AC configures, queries and manages
   the WTP, and the WTP reports status and airtime monitoring
   information to the AC.  Traffic sent between the client and the
   network behind the AC goes through the data channel.

   [RFC5415] defines using DTLS [RFC6347]to protect the control and data
   channels.  Other protocols such as IPSec [RFC4301] or TLS [RFC5246]
   can also be implemented to secure the control traffic in addition to
   the user data channel.

   In order to establish secure connections between the WTP and AC
   credentials MUST be deployed on each device.  The most obvious choice
   is an X.509 certificate which can be used to perform mutual
   authentication with DTLS [RFC6347], IPsec [RFC4301] or TLS [RFC5246].

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5.  Client to AAA Service Cryptographic Security

5.1.  EAP Method

   The [IEEE.802-11.2012]standard defines a Robust Security Network
   (RSN).  An RSN can utilizes IEEE 802.1x [IEEE.802-1X.2010] and the
   Extensible Authentication Protocol [RFC3748], or it can use the SAE
   protocol in [IEEE.802-11.2012] to provide authentication and key
   management services between the client and WLAS.  EAP Authentication
   occurs between the client and the AAA service which may reside within
   a component of the WLAS (WTP or AC) or as a standalone AAA Server.
   It is not the intent of this document to specify the type of
   transport for the authentication service (i.e RADIUS, Diameter
   [RFC3588] etc) or the specific communication channel between the
   Network Access Server (NAS) and the Authentication Service.  Mutual-
   Authentication is achieved through the establishment of a secure
   channel for exchanging credentials between the client and the
   Authentication Server utilizing an EAP method which satisfies the
   requirements of [RFC4017].  The main output of the EAP process is the
   generation of the Master Session Key (MSK) and Extended Master
   Session Key (EMSK) known only to the Client (supplicant) and the AAA
   server that will be used to generate the keying material for the
   cipher suites.  An in depth discussion on EAP Key management can be
   found in EAP Key Management Framework document [RFC5247].

5.2.  Pre Shared Key, or Password, Method

   When 802.1X is not used, a pre-shared key or password/passphrase can
   be used with the SAE protocol from [IEEE.802-11.2012] to perform the
   mutual authentication and key management functions required by an
   RSN.  SAE employs a zero-knowledge proof protocol that allows the
   client and WTC/AC to prove knowledge of a shared secret (PSK or
   password or passphrase) without disclosing the secret.  It is
   resistant to off-line dictionary attack.  The result of the SAE
   protocol is a cryptographically strong PMK based on discrete
   logarithm cryptography.

   An alternative to SAE is the pre-shared KEY mode of
   [IEEE.802-11.2012] referred to by the Wi-Fi Alliance as Wi-Fi
   Protected Access Personal (WPA2-PSK).  With WPA2-PSK, the pre-shared
   key repeatedly hashed to directly generate a 256-bit PMK.  This
   technique should be avoided, though, as is susceptible to off-line
   dictionary attack and numerous attack tools to subvert WPA2-PSK exist
   on the Internet.

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6.  Authenticator to AAA Service Cryptographic Security

   As stated in the previous section, the byproduct of EAP
   authentication is the generation of keying material to be used in the
   cryptographic process between the client and the WTP to secure the
   over the air communications.  The AAA server generates the AAA key
   which will be forwarded directly to the WTP in a Standalone WLAS, and
   forwarded to the AC in a Centralized WLAS where they will generate
   the Pairwise Master Key (PMK) (bits 0-255 of the AAA key).  The
   transmission of the AAA key needs to be protected between the AAA
   server and the WTP or the AAA server and the AC depending on which
   architecture is deployed.  NIST has previously made recommendations
   on securely encrypting plain text keying material for transport over
   insecure media with AES Key Wrap [AES_Key_Wrap] as well as industry
   with the Advanced Encryption Standard Key Wrap Algorithm [RFC3394].
   In addition to the transport of the keying material it is suggested
   that all AAA traffic between the Authenticator (WTP or AC) and the
   Authentication Service (AAA) be secured by standards based methods
   such as, but not limited to: IPSEC, TLS or DTLS.

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7.  Wireless Link Layer Cryptographic Security

   Upon completion of an authentication protocol, such as SAE or
   [IEEE.802-1X.2010], the client and AC (or WTP) share a PMK.  Since
   the PMK may be been disclosed by an external AAA server to the AC (or
   WTP) it is necessary to perform a key confirmation handshake.
   [IEEE.802-11.2012] defines the 4-way Handshake to prove possession of
   the PMK and to derive a transient session key, called the PTK, which
   is used to secure the wireless link layer.  During the 4-way
   handshake, the WTP or AC also discloses a broadcast/multicast key,
   called the GTK, to use for the wireless media.

   Wireless link layer communication is protected through the Advanced
   Encryption Standard Counter Mode with Cipher Block Chaining Message
   Authentication Code Protocol (AES-CCMP).  AES-CCMP is currently the
   preferred cryptographic algorithm for both unicast and multicast/
   broadcast traffic.  The client is the source and sink of a secure bi-
   directional data flow.  The other end of that flow can be either the
   WTP or the AC, depending on whether it is a standalone WLAS
   (Section 3.2) or a centralized WLAS (Section 3.3), respectively.

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8.  Cryptographic profiles

   In each of the above architectural areas, there are a number of
   different security protocols that serve various functions needed to
   build secure wireless LAN architectures.  Each protocol has important
   choices to be made in context of this overall cryptographic security
   within that protocol and subsequently has significant impacts to the
   overall security parameters of the system.  The security mechanisms
   are summarized in Table 1.

   +--------+------------+---------------+------------+----------------+
   |        |   Client   |      WTP      |     AC     |       AAA      |
   +--------+------------+---------------+------------+----------------+
   | Client |            |     802.11    | 3rd Party; |    EAP w/TLS   |
   |        |            |               |   802.1x   |                |
   |        |            |               | Supplicant |                |
   +--------+------------+---------------+------------+----------------+
   |   WTP  |   802.11   |               |    DTLS;   |   TLS, DTLS,   |
   |        |            |               |    IPSEC   |   IPSec, AES   |
   |        |            |               |            |     KeyWrap    |
   |        |            |               |            |   (Standalone  |
   |        |            |               |            |  Architecture) |
   +--------+------------+---------------+------------+----------------+
   |   AC   | 3rd Party; |  DTLS; IPSEC  |            |   TLS, DTLS,   |
   |        |   802.1x   |               |            |   IPSec, AES   |
   |        | Supplicant |               |            |     KeyWrap    |
   +--------+------------+---------------+------------+----------------+
   |   AAA  |  EAP w/TLS |   TLS, DTLS,  | TLS, DTLS, |                |
   |        |            |   IPSec, AES  | IPSec, AES |                |
   |        |            |    KeyWrap    |   KeyWrap  |                |
   |        |            |  (Standalone  |            |                |
   |        |            | Architecture) |            |                |
   +--------+------------+---------------+------------+----------------+

               Table 1: Cryptographic Security Interactions

8.1.  DTLS and TLS

   TLS and DTLS are well studied and documented from a cryptographic
   strength perspective and there are a number of works that create
   profiles for TLS and DTLS and its use within systems of varying
   security requirements.  Table 2 provides an example of the
   cryptographic functional requirements necessary to define a TLS
   CipherSuite and associated security of each.  When profiling against
   this document, authors MUST define cryptographic algorithms for each
   function in Table 2

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   +-------------+----------+------------+---------------+-------------+
   |   Function  |  Example | Cryptograp |   Algorithm   | Cryptograph |
   |             | Algorith | h    ic    |   Reference   | i c Strengt |
   |             | m    s   |   Strength |               | h Reference |
   +-------------+----------+------------+---------------+-------------+
   | Authenticat | RSA 2048 |     112    |   [RFC3447]   |   NIST SP   |
   | i     on    |          |            |               |    800-57   |
   |             |          |            |               | [NIST800-57 |
   |             |          |            |               | ]           |
   +-------------+----------+------------+---------------+-------------+
   |     Key     | ECC P256 |     128    |   [RFC4492]   |   NIST SP   |
   |   Exchange  |          |            |               |    800-57   |
   |             |          |            |               | [NIST800-57 |
   |             |          |            |               | ]           |
   +-------------+----------+------------+---------------+-------------+
   |   Payload   |  AES 128 |     128    | [FIPS.197.200 |   NIST SP   |
   |  Protection |    CBC   |            | 1      ]      |    800-57   |
   |             |          |            |               | [NIST800-57 |
   |             |          |            |               | ]           |
   +-------------+----------+------------+---------------+-------------+
   |   Message   | HMAC-SHA |     128    | [NIST.PUB.198 |   NIST SP   |
   |     Auth    | -    1   |            | A      ]      |    800-57   |
   |             |          |            |               | [NIST800-57 |
   |             |          |            |               | ]           |
   +-------------+----------+------------+---------------+-------------+

          Table 2: DTLS and TLS Cryptographic Security Algorithms

   Throughout the Wireless LAN Access System, TLS and DTLS are used in a
   number of different places.  Someone profiling wireless architectures
   might require alternative algorithm definitions for different uses of
   TLS/DTLS in the architecture.  One example might be a place that
   describes using TLS or DTLS to protect the transport of an ephemeral
   key vs its use to protect a long lived secret.  In this case, a
   profile might be willing to trade off less security of the
   cryptographic algorithms for the ephemeral key.

   Table 3 shows the places in the wireless architectures described in
   Section 3 that TLS or DTLS can be used

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   +---------------------+-----------+---------------------------------+
   |     Location in     |  Protocol |         Used to Protect         |
   |     Architecture    |           |                                 |
   +---------------------+-----------+---------------------------------+
   |    WTP To Access    |   CAPWAP  |  Management, session keys, user |
   |  Controller Service |   using   |             traffic             |
   |     (Section 4)     |    DTLS   |                                 |
   +---------------------+-----------+---------------------------------+
   |    Client to AAA    |    EAP    |   session keys, authentication  |
   | Service (Section 5) |   method  |                                 |
   |                     | using TLS |                                 |
   +---------------------+-----------+---------------------------------+
   |   Authenticator to  | DTLS/TLS, |       Confidentiality and       |
   |     AAA Service     |   IPSec   |  Authenticity of Radius traffic |
   |     (Section 6)     |           |      (wrapped session keys)     |
   +---------------------+-----------+---------------------------------+

                 Table 3: DTLS and TLS Architectural Usage

8.2.  X.509 Certificates

   The security level provided by algorithm and key length choice for
   X.509 Certificates is well studied solely in context of the
   certificates itself.  Table 4 lists the types of cryptographic
   security functions used within X.509 Certificates and provides
   examples for each.  Any profile of Wireless LAN Architecture MUST
   include definitions for each cryptographic security function used
   within X.509 certificates.

   +----------+-----------+--------------+-------------+---------------+
   | Function |  Example  | Cryptographi |  Algorithm  | Cryptographic |
   |          | Algorithm | c  Strength  |  Reference  |    Strength   |
   |          | s         |              |             |   Reference   |
   +----------+-----------+--------------+-------------+---------------+
   | Signatur |  RSA with |      112     |  [RFC3447]  |    NIST SP    |
   | e        |  2048 bit |              |             |     800-57    |
   |  Algorit |   public  |              |             |  [NIST800-57] |
   | hm       |    keys   |              |             |               |
   +----------+-----------+--------------+-------------+---------------+
   |  Public  |  RSA 2048 |      112     |  [RFC3447]  |    NIST SP    |
   |    Key   |           |              |             |     800-57    |
   | Algorith |           |              |             |  [NIST800-57] |
   | m        |           |              |             |               |
   +----------+-----------+--------------+-------------+---------------+
   |   Hash   |   SHA256  |      128     | [FIPS-180-3 |    NIST SP    |
   | Function |           |              | ]           |     800-57    |
   |          |           |              |             |  [NIST800-57] |
   +----------+-----------+--------------+-------------+---------------+

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        Table 4: X.509 Certificate Cryptographic Security Functions

   Throughout the Wireless LAN Access System, X.509 certificates are
   used in a number of different places.  Table 5 shows the places in
   the wireless architectures described in Section 3 that X.509
   Certificates are potentially used

   +----------------------+----------------+---------------------------+
   |      Location in     |    Protocol    |      Used to Protect      |
   |     Architecture     |                |                           |
   +----------------------+----------------+---------------------------+
   |     WTP To Access    |    DTLS used   |      Authenticity of      |
   |  Controller Service  | within CAPWAP; | Management, session keys, |
   |      (Section 4)     |      IPSec     |        user traffic       |
   +----------------------+----------------+---------------------------+
   |     Client to AAA    |  TLS (Example  |  Authenticity of session  |
   |  Service (Section 5) |   EAP Method)  |    keys, authentication   |
   +----------------------+----------------+---------------------------+
   | Authenticator to AAA |  DTLS, TLS or  |    Authenticity of AAA    |
   |  Service (Section 6) |      IPSec     |  traffic (wrapped session |
   |                      |                |           keys)           |
   +----------------------+----------------+---------------------------+

                    Table 5: X.509 Architectural Usage

8.3.  Link Layer Encryption

   Link Layer encryption for Wireless LAN Access Systems is well defined
   by the IEEE 802.11-2012 standard Future 802.11 standards need to
   address link layer encryption as an integral part of the standard.
   Current 802.11 standards require the implementation of 128 bit key
   length.

   +------------+-----------+------------+----------------+------------+
   |  Function  |  Example  | Cryptograp |    Algorithm   | Cryptograp |
   |            | Algorithm | h    ic    |    Reference   | h    ic    |
   |            | s         |   Strength |                |   Strength |
   |            |           |            |                |   Referenc |
   |            |           |            |                | e          |
   +------------+-----------+------------+----------------+------------+
   |  802.1x 4  |  AES Key  |     128    | [IEEE.802-11.2 |   NIST SP  |
   |     Way    | Wrap with |            | 0      12]     |   800-57   |
   |  Handshake | HMAC-SHA1 |            |                | [NIST800-5 |
   |            | -   128   |            |                | 7     ]    |
   +------------+-----------+------------+----------------+------------+

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   +------------+-----------+------------+----------------+------------+
   |   Message  | HMAC-SHA- |     128    | [NIST.PUB.198A |   NIST SP  |
   | Authentica | 1         |            | ]              |   800-57   |
   | t    ion   |           |            |                | [NIST800-5 |
   |            |           |            |                | 7     ]    |
   +------------+-----------+------------+----------------+------------+
   | Pseudo-Ran | HMAC-SHA- |     128    | [NIST.PUB.198A |   NIST SP  |
   | d    om    | 1         |            | ]              |   800-57   |
   |   Function |           |            |                | [NIST800-5 |
   |            |           |            |                | 7     ]    |
   +------------+-----------+------------+----------------+------------+
   |   802.11   |  AES-CCMP |     128    | [FIPS.197.2001 |   NIST SP  |
   | Management |           |            | ]              |   800-57   |
   |    Frame   |           |            |                | [NIST800-5 |
   | Encryption |           |            |                | 7     ]    |
   +------------+-----------+------------+----------------+------------+
   |   802.11   |  AES-CCMP |     128    | [FIPS.197.2001 |   NIST SP  |
   |   Payload  |           |            | ]              |   800-57   |
   | Encryption |           |            |                | [NIST800-5 |
   |            |           |            |                | 7     ]    |
   +------------+-----------+------------+----------------+------------+

                  Table 6: Link Layer Security Algorithms

   As a minimum, link layer encryption needs to be used in wireless
   architectures as indicated in Table 7 to protect the data in transit.
   When profiling against this document, authors MUST define
   cryptographic algorithms for each function described in Table 7.  In
   addition to over the air link layer encryption, there are other
   places where related, but different link layer encryption (i.e.
   802.1ae) could be leveraged within the wireless architecture.  Link
   layer encryption in these alternative places MAY be profiled for use
   in the overall cryptographic integrity of the system but are not
   covered here.

   +--------------+------------+---------------------------------------+
   | Location in  | Protocol   | Used to Protect                       |
   | Architecture |            |                                       |
   +--------------+------------+---------------------------------------+
   | Client to    | AES-CCMP,  | 802.1x 4-way handshake (stand alone   |
   | WTP          | AES Key    | configuration), 802.11                |
   | (Section 7)  | Wrap,      | unicast/multicast data frames and     |
   |              | HMAC-SHA-1 | Management Frame protection using the |
   |              |            | Integrity Group Temporal Key (IGTK)   |
   +--------------+------------+---------------------------------------+

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   +--------------+------------+---------------------------------------+
   | Client to AC | AES-CCMP,  | 802.1x 4-way handshake and optional   |
   |              | AES Key    | configuration where 802.11            |
   |              | Wrap,      | unicast/multicast data frames and     |
   |              | HMAC-SHA-1 | Management Frame protection using the |
   |              |            | Integrity Group Temporal Key          |
   |              |            | (IGTK)encryption is performed on the  |
   |              |            | AC                                    |
   +--------------+------------+---------------------------------------+

             Table 7: Link Layer Encryption Architectural Uses

8.4.  AAA

   It is strongly suggested that traffic between the WTP/AC and the AAA
   service be secured to provide confidentiality and integrity of the
   user/device being authenticated as well as the key data used for the
   encryption process.  The use of the well documented cryptographic
   protocols IPSEC (Section 8.5), TLS or DTLS (Section 8.1) can be used
   to protect traffic between the WTP/AC and the AAA service.  When
   profiling against this document, authors MUST define the
   cryptographic algorithms for each function in listed in Table 8

   +---------------+----------------+----------------------------------+
   | Location in   | Protocol       | Used to Protect                  |
   | Architecture  |                |                                  |
   +---------------+----------------+----------------------------------+
   | Authenticator | TLS/DTLS or    | Used to secure all               |
   | to AAA        | IPSec          | authentication traffic between   |
   | (Section 6)   |                | the Authenticator (WTP or AC)    |
   |               |                | and the AAA service              |
   +---------------+----------------+----------------------------------+
   | Authenticator | AES Key Wrap   | Used to encrypt only the key     |
   | to AAA        | [AES_Key_Wrap] | data between the Authenticator   |
   | (Section 6)   |                | (WTP or AC) and the AAA services |
   +---------------+----------------+----------------------------------+
   | Client to AAA | EAP            | Used to perform authentication   |
   | (Section 5)   |                | between Client and AAA server    |
   +---------------+----------------+----------------------------------+

                 Table 8: AAA Security Architectural Uses

8.5.  IPSEC

   IPSEC is well studied and documented from a cryptographic strength
   perspective and there are a number of works that create profiles for
   IPSEC and its use within systems of varying security requirements.
   Table 9 provides an example of the cryptographic functional

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   requirements necessary to define an IPSEC CipherSuite and associated
   security of each.  When profiling against this document, authors MUST
   define cryptographic algorithms for each function in Table 9

   +------------+-----------+------------+--------------+--------------+
   |  Function  |  Example  | Cryptograp |   Algorithm  | Cryptographi |
   |            | Algorithm | h    ic    |   Reference  | c  Strength  |
   |            | s         |   Strength |              |    Reference |
   +------------+-----------+------------+--------------+--------------+
   |     IKE    |  RSA 2048 |     112    |   [RFC3447]  |    NIST SP   |
   | Authentica |           |            |              |    800-57    |
   | t    ion   |           |            |              | [NIST800-57] |
   +------------+-----------+------------+--------------+--------------+
   |     IKE    | HMAC-SHA- |     256    |   [RFC4868]  |    NIST SP   |
   | Pseudo-ran | 2    56   |            |              |    800-57    |
   | d    om    |           |            |              | [NIST800-57] |
   |   Function |           |            |              |              |
   +------------+-----------+------------+--------------+--------------+
   |     IKE    |  Group 14 |     112    |   [RFC3526]  |    NIST SP   |
   | Diffie-Hel |           |            |              |    800-57    |
   | l man grou |           |            |              | [NIST800-57] |
   | p          |           |            |              |              |
   +------------+-----------+------------+--------------+--------------+
   |  IKE Hash  |  SHA-256  |     128    | [FIPS-180-3] |    NIST SP   |
   |            |           |            |              |    800-57    |
   |            |           |            |              | [NIST800-57] |
   +------------+-----------+------------+--------------+--------------+
   |     IKE    |  AES 128  |     128    | [FIPS.197.20 |    NIST SP   |
   | Encryption |    CBC    |            | 0     1]     |    800-57    |
   |            |           |            |              | [NIST800-57] |
   +------------+-----------+------------+--------------+--------------+
   |     ESP    |  AES-CBC  |     128    | [FIPS.197.20 |    NIST SP   |
   | Encryption |           |            | 0     1]     |    800-57    |
   |            |           |            |              | [NIST800-57] |
   +------------+-----------+------------+--------------+--------------+
   |     ESP    | HMAC-SHA1 |     128    | [FIPS-180-3] | [NIST.PUB.19 |
   |  Integrity |           |            |              | 8     A]     |
   +------------+-----------+------------+--------------+--------------+

             Table 9: IPSEC Cryptographic Security Algorithms

   IPSec in many cases has been superseded by other protocols for
   security within the Wireless LAN Access System.  However, IPSEC could
   play a role and Table 10 describes places in the WLAN Access System
   Architecture (Section 3) where it can be utilized.

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   +----------------------+----------+---------------------------------+
   |      Location in     | Protocol |         Used to Protect         |
   |     Architecture     |          |                                 |
   +----------------------+----------+---------------------------------+
   |     WTP To Access    |   IPSec  |   Authenticity of Management,   |
   |  Controller Service  |          |    session keys, user traffic   |
   |      (Section 4)     |          |                                 |
   +----------------------+----------+---------------------------------+
   | Authenticator to AAA |   IPSec  |         Authenticity and        |
   |  Service (Section 6) |          |  Confidentiality of AAA traffic |
   |                      |          |      (wrapped session keys)     |
   +----------------------+----------+---------------------------------+

                    Table 10: IPSEC Architectural Usage

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9.  Security Considerations

   The cryptographic security level of a complex system is limited to
   that of the weakest component in the system.  The use of 128-bit
   block ciphers with 128-bit keys is now common, but in many systems,
   the security is limited by other factors, such as public keys with a
   strength of just 80 bits, or keys that are manually configured.  A
   typical security protocol uses multiple cryptographic algorithms to
   achieve different security goals: encryption to provide
   confidentiality, data authentication to protect the integrity of
   data, key derivation to provide the keys for those algorithms, key
   establishment to determine shared keys, and digital signatures to
   authenticate the entity on the other end of the wire.  In order to
   provide a high security level, a protocol needs to use algorithms and
   parameters that consistently meet that security goal.  Wireless
   systems use multiple security protocols, thus requiring consistency
   across multiple protocols.  To achieve consistency, one must first
   understand all of the cryptographic components in a wireless system.
   This note makes that process easier, by cataloging the components
   that appear in typical wireless architectures.

   It is also important to note that not all secrets are equal.  A
   secret which gives you access to data for a short period of time
   might be considered less important than one that exposes data for a
   longer period of time.  Depending on the system being built and
   associated security constraints, the value of the secret being
   protected can inform appropriate choices for the cryptographic
   strength over sub components of a wireless architecture.

   Finally, this note is intended to encourage the use of consistent
   cryptographic strengths of confidentiality, integrity and
   authenticity within the entire wireless LAN architecture.  While
   profiles of this document might justify inconsistent algorithm
   strength choices, the profiles need to use cryptography throughout
   the architecture to provide end-to-end security.

9.1.  Algorithm Choices

   The choices of the algorithms to use in this document are left to the
   profile authors discretion.  However, it must be clear that profiles
   need to avoid the use of known broken cryptographic algorithms (i.e.
   WEP, TKIP, etc).

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10.  IANA Considerations

   None

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11.  Acknowledgements

   The authors would like to acknowledge David McGrew, Nancy Cam-Winget
   and Carlos Pignataro for their constructive comments on this
   document.

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12.  References

12.1.  Normative References

   [IEEE.802-11.2012]
              "IEEE Standard for Information technology--
              Telecommunications and information exchange between
              systems-- Local and metropolitan area networks-- Specific
              requirements Part 11: Wireless LAN Medium Access Control
              (MAC) and Physical Layer (PHY) Specifications",
              March 2012, <http://standards.ieee.org/getieee802/
              download/802.11-2012.pdf>.

   [IEEE.802-1X.2010]
              "IEEE Standard for Local and metropolitan area networks -
              Port-Based Network Access Control", 2010, <http://
              standards.ieee.org/getieee802/download/802.1X-2010.pdf>.

   [RFC2865]  Rigney, C., Willens, S., Rubens, A., and W. Simpson,
              "Remote Authentication Dial In User Service (RADIUS)",
              RFC 2865, June 2000.

   [RFC5415]  Calhoun, P., Montemurro, M., and D. Stanley, "Control And
              Provisioning of Wireless Access Points (CAPWAP) Protocol
              Specification", RFC 5415, March 2009.

12.2.  Informative References

   [AES_Key_Wrap]
              "", <http://csrc.nist.gov/groups/ST/toolkit/documents/kms/
              key-wrap.pdf>.

   [FIPS-180-3]
              FIPS Publication 180-3, "Secured Hash Standard",
              FIPS 180-3, October 2008.

   [FIPS.197.2001]
              National Institute of Standards and Technology, "Advanced
              Encryption Standard (AES)", FIPS PUB 197, November 2001, <
              http://csrc.nist.gov/publications/fips/fips197/
              fips-197.pdf>.

   [NIST.PUB.198A]
              National Institute of Standards and Technology, "The
              Keyed-Hash Message Authentication Code (HMAC)", FIPS PUB
              198A, March 2002, <http://csrc.nist.gov/publications/fips/
              fips198/fips-198a.pdf>.

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   [NIST800-57]
              Barker, E., Barker, W., Burr, W., Polk, W., and M. Smid,
              "Recommendations for Key Management", NIST SP 800-57,
              March 2007.

   [RFC2119]  Bradner, S., "Key words for use in RFCs to Indicate
              Requirement Levels", BCP 14, RFC 2119, March 1997.

   [RFC3394]  Schaad, J. and R. Housley, "Advanced Encryption Standard
              (AES) Key Wrap Algorithm", RFC 3394, September 2002.

   [RFC3447]  Jonsson, J. and B. Kaliski, "Public-Key Cryptography
              Standards (PKCS) #1: RSA Cryptography Specifications
              Version 2.1", RFC 3447, February 2003.

   [RFC3526]  Kivinen, T. and M. Kojo, "More Modular Exponential (MODP)
              Diffie-Hellman groups for Internet Key Exchange (IKE)",
              RFC 3526, May 2003.

   [RFC3588]  Calhoun, P., Loughney, J., Guttman, E., Zorn, G., and J.
              Arkko, "Diameter Base Protocol", RFC 3588, September 2003.

   [RFC3748]  Aboba, B., Blunk, L., Vollbrecht, J., Carlson, J., and H.
              Levkowetz, "Extensible Authentication Protocol (EAP)",
              RFC 3748, June 2004.

   [RFC4017]  Stanley, D., Walker, J., and B. Aboba, "Extensible
              Authentication Protocol (EAP) Method Requirements for
              Wireless LANs", RFC 4017, March 2005.

   [RFC4301]  Kent, S. and K. Seo, "Security Architecture for the
              Internet Protocol", RFC 4301, December 2005.

   [RFC4492]  Blake-Wilson, S., Bolyard, N., Gupta, V., Hawk, C., and B.
              Moeller, "Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC) Cipher Suites
              for Transport Layer Security (TLS)", RFC 4492, May 2006.

   [RFC4868]  Kelly, S. and S. Frankel, "Using HMAC-SHA-256, HMAC-SHA-
              384, and HMAC-SHA-512 with IPsec", RFC 4868, May 2007.

   [RFC5246]  Dierks, T. and E. Rescorla, "The Transport Layer Security
              (TLS) Protocol Version 1.2", RFC 5246, August 2008.

   [RFC5247]  Aboba, B., Simon, D., and P. Eronen, "Extensible
              Authentication Protocol (EAP) Key Management Framework",
              RFC 5247, August 2008.

   [RFC6347]  Rescorla, E. and N. Modadugu, "Datagram Transport Layer

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              Security Version 1.2", RFC 6347, January 2012.

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Authors' Addresses

   Stephen M. Orr
   Cisco Systems, Inc.
   1 Paragon Drive
   Suite 275
   Montvale, NJ  07645
   US

   Email: sorr@cisco.com

   Anthony H. Grieco
   Cisco Systems, Inc.
   7025 Kit Creek Road
   RTP, NC  27709
   US

   Email: agrieco@cisco.com

   Dan Harkins
   Aruba Networks
   1322 Crossman ave
   Sunnyvale, CA  94089
   US

   Email: dharkins@arubanetworks.com

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