Luyuan Fang
                                                               (editor)
                                                                   AT&T

                                                      Michael Behringer
                                                                  Cisco

                                                            Ross Callon
                                                                Juniper

                                                          Fabio Chiussi
                                                    Lucent Technologies

                                                       Jeremy De Clercq
                                                                Alcatel

                                                             Mark Duffy
                                                    Quarry Technologies

   Provider Provisioned VPN WG                             Paul Hitchen
                                                                     BT

   Internet Draft                                           Paul Knight
                                                        Nortel Networks
   Document:
   draft-fang-ppvpn-security-framework-01.txt
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   Security Framework for Provider Provisioned Virtual Private Networks


Status of this Memo

   This document is an Internet-Draft and is in full conformance with
   all provisions of Section 10 of RFC2026.


   Internet-Drafts are working documents of the Internet Engineering
   Task Force (IETF), its areas, and its working groups.  Note that
   other groups may also distribute working documents as Internet-
   Drafts.

   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."



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   The list of current Internet-Drafts can be accessed at
        http://www.ietf.org/ietf/1id-abstracts.txt
   The list of Internet-Draft Shadow Directories can be accessed at
        http://www.ietf.org/shadow.html.


Abstract

   This draft addresses security aspects pertaining to Provider
   Provisioned Virtual Private Networks (PPVPNs). We first describe the
   security threats that are relevant in the context of PPVPNs, and the
   defensive techniques that can be used to combat those threats. We
   consider security issues deriving both from malicious behavior of
   anyone and from negligent or incorrect behavior of the providers. We
   also describe how these security attacks should be detected and
   reported. We then discuss the possible user requirements in terms of
   security in a PPVPN service. These user requirements translate into
   corresponding requirements for the providers. In addition, the
   provider may have additional requirements to make its network
   infrastructure secure and meet the VPN customerÆs expectations.
   Finally, we define a template that may be used to analyze the
   security characteristics of a specific PPVPN technology and describe
   them in a manner consistent with this framework.

Table of Contents

   Status of this Memo................................................1
   Abstract...........................................................2
   Conventions used in this document..................................3
   1. Introduction...................................................3
   2. Security Reference Model.......................................4
   3. Security Threats...............................................5
   3.1.  Attacks on the Data Plane...................................7
   3.2.  Attacks on the Control Plane................................8
   4. Defensive Techniques...........................................9
   4.1.  Cryptographic techniques...................................10
   4.2.  Authentication.............................................13
   4.3.  Access Control techniques..................................14
   4.4.  Use of Isolated Infrastructure.............................17
   4.5.  Use of Aggregated Infrastructure...........................18
   4.6.  Service Provider Quality Control Processes.................18
   4.7.  Deployment of Testable PPVPN Service.......................19
   5. Monitoring, Detection, and Reporting of Security Attacks......19
   6. User Security Requirements....................................20
   6.1.  Isolation..................................................20
   6.2.  Protection.................................................21
   6.3.  Confidentiality............................................22
   6.4.  CE Authentication..........................................22

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   6.5.  Integrity..................................................22
   6.6.  Anti-Replay................................................22
   6.7.  Non-repudiation............................................22
   7. Provider Security Requirements................................22
   7.1.  Protection within the Core Network.........................23
   7.2.  Protection on the User Access Link.........................24
   7.3.  General Requirements for PPVPN Providers...................26
   8. Security Evaluation of PPVPN Technologies.....................26
   8.1.  Evaluating the Template....................................26
   8.2.  Template...................................................27
   9. Security Considerations.......................................29
   References........................................................29
   Author's Addresses................................................30
   Full Copyright Statement..........................................31

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 RFC-2119 [1].


1. Introduction

   Security is clearly an integral aspect of Provider Provisioned
   Virtual Private Network (PPVPN) services.

   In this document, we first describe the security threats that are
   relevant in the context of PPVPNs, and the defensive techniques that
   can be used to combat those threats. We consider security issues
   deriving both from malicious behavior of users and other parties and
   from negligent or incorrect behavior of the providers. An important
   part of security defense is the detection and report of a security
   attack, which is also addressed in this document.

   We then discuss the possible user and provider security requirements
   in a PPVPN service. The users have expectations that need to be met
   on the security characteristics of a VPN service. These user
   requirements translate into corresponding requirements for the
   providers in order to offer the service. In addition, providers have
   security requirements to protect their network infrastructure, and
   make it secure so it can provide the PPVPN services.

   Finally, we define a template that may be used to describe the
   security characteristics of a specific PPVPN technology in a manner
   consistent with the security framework described in this document.
   It is not within the scope of this document to analyze the security
   properties of specific technologies; instead, our intention with
   this template is to provide a common tool, in the form of a check

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   list, that may be used in other documents dedicated to an in-depth
   security analysis of individual PPVPN technologies to describe their
   security characteristics in a comprehensive and coherent way, and to
   provide a common ground for comparison between different
   technologies.

   It is important to clarify that, in this document, we limit
   ourselves to describing the users and providersÆ security
   requirements that pertain to PPVPN services. It is not our
   intention, however, to formulate precise ôrequirementsö on each
   specific technology in terms of defining the mechanisms and
   techniques that must be implemented to satisfy such users and
   providersÆ requirements.

   This document is organized as follows. In Section 2, we define the
   security reference model for security in PPVPN networks, which we
   use in the rest of the document. In Section 3, we describe the
   security threats that are specific of PPVPNs. In Section 4, we
   review defense techniques that may be used against those threats. In
   Section 5, we describe how attacks may be detected and reported. In
   Section 6, we discuss the user security requirements that apply to
   PPVPN services. In Section 7, we describe additional security
   requirements that the provider may have in order to guarantee the
   security of the network infrastructure to provide PPVPN services.
   Finally, in Section 8, we provide a template that may be used to
   describe the security characteristics of specific PPVPN
   technologies.

2. Security Reference Model

   This section defines the terminology used in this document, and a
   reference model for security in PPVPN networks.

   A PPVPN core network is defined here as the central network
   infrastructure over which PPVPN services are delivered. All network
   elements in the core are under the operational control of one or
   more PPVPN service providers. PPVPN services can also be delivered
   over the Internet, in which case the Internet forms a logical part
   of the PPVPN core.

   A PPVPN user is a company, institution or residential client of the
   PPVPN service provider.

   A PPVPN service is a private network service made available by a
   service provider to a PPVPN user.  The service is implemented using
   virtual constructs built on a shared PPVPN core network.  A PPVPN
   service interconnects sites of a PPVPN user.

   Extranets are VPNs in which multiple sites are controlled by
   different (legal) entities. Extranets are another example of PPVPN
   deployment scenarios where restricted and controlled communication

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   is allowed between trusted zones, often via well-defined transit
   points.

   This document defines each PPVPN as a trusted zone, and the PPVPN
   core as another trusted zone. A primary concern is about security
   aspects that relate to breaches of security from the "outside" of a
   trusted zone to the "inside" of this zone. Figure 1 depicts the
   concept of trusted zones within the PPVPN framework.


   +------------+                             +------------+
   | PPVPN      +-----------------------------+      PPVPN |
   | user           PPVPN                             user |
   | site       +---------------------XXX-----+       site |
   +------------+  +------------------XXX--+  +------------+
                   |   PPVPN core     | |  |
                   +------------------| |--+
                                      | |
                                      | +------\
                                      +--------/  Internet

   Figure 1: The PPVPN trusted zone model

   In principle the trusted zones should be separate, however, often
   PPVPN core networks also offer Internet access, in which case a
   transit point (marked with "XXX" in the figure) is defined.

   The key requirement of a "virtual private" network (VPN) is that the
   security of the trusted zone of the VPN is not compromised by
   sharing the core infrastructure with other VPNs.

   Security against threats that originate within the same trusted zone
   as their targets (for example, attacks from a user in a PPVPN to
   other users within the same PPVPN, or attacks entirely within the
   core network) is outside the scope of this document.

   Also outside the scope are all aspects of network security which are
   independent of whether a network is a PPVPN network or a
   conventional network (for example, attacks from the Internet to a
   server of a given PPVPN user will not be considered here, unless the
   way to provision the PPVPN network could make a difference to the
   security of this server).

3. Security Threats

   This section discusses the various network security threats that may
   endanger PPVPNs.  The discussion is limited to those threats that
   are unique to PPVPNs, or that affect PPVPNs in unique ways.




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   A successful attack on a particular PPVPN or on a service provider's
   PPVPN infrastructure would be expected to have effects of the
   following unhappy sorts:

    - Observation, modification, or deletion of PPVPN user data.
    - Replay of PPVPN user data.
    - Injection of non-authentic data into a PPVPN.
    - Traffic pattern analysis on PPVPN traffic.
    - Disruption of PPVPN connectivity.
    - Degradation of PPVPN service quality

   It is useful to consider that threats, whether malicious or
   accidental, to a PPVPN may come from different categories of
   sources.  For example they may come from:

    - The PPVPN service provider or persons working for it.
    - Other persons who obtain physical access to a service provider
      site.
    - Persons within the organization which is the PPVPN user with
      respect to a particular PPVPN.
    - Persons within an organization that is a separate PPVPN user of
      the same service provider.
    - Others i.e. attackers from the Internet at large.

   In the case of PPVPNs, some parties may be in more advantaged
   positions that enable them to launch types of attacks not available
   to others.  For example other PPVPN users of the same service
   provider may be able to launch attacks that those completely outside
   the network cannot.

   It is also useful to consider the likelihood of different sorts of
   threats occurring.  There is at least a perceived difference in the
   likelihood of most types of attacks being successfully mounted in
   different environments, such as:

    - In a TDM or ATM access network between a PPVPN user and the
      service provider
    - In an Ethernet access network
    - In a PPVPN contained within one service provider's network
    - In a PPVPN transiting the public Internet

   Most types of threats become easier to mount and hence more likely
   as the access link via which VPN service is provided changes from a
   point-to-point layer 2 circuit to an Ethernet, or as the shared
   infrastructure via which VPN service is provided expands from a
   single service provider to multiple cooperating providers to the
   global Internet.  Threats that may not be of sufficient likeliness
   to warrant concern in a closely controlled environment often require
   defensive measures in broader, more open environments.



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   The following sections discuss specific types of exploits that
   threaten PPVPNs.

3.1.    Attacks on the Data Plane

   This category encompasses attacks on the PPVPN user's data, as
   viewed by the service provider.  Note that from the PPVPN user's
   point of view, some of this might be control plane traffic, e.g.
   routing protocols running from PPVPN user site to PPVPN user site
   via an L2 PPVPN.

3.1.1.  Insertion of Non-Authentic Data Traffic: Spoofing and Replay

   This refers to the insertion (or "spoofing") into the VPN of packets
   that do not belong there, with the objective of having them accepted
   as legitimate.  Included in this category is the insertion of copies
   of once-legitimate packets that have been recorded and replayed.

3.1.2.  Denial of Service Attacks on the VPN

   DOS attacks on the data plane could be mounted by inserting an
   overwhelming quantity of non-authentic data into a specific PPVPN.

   DOS attacks could also be mounted by overwhelming the service
   provider's general (VPN-independent) infrastructure with traffic, or
   by interfering with its operation e.g. by disrupting control
   protocols or general packet flow.  These attacks on the general
   infrastructure are not usually a PPVPN-specific issue, unless the
   attack is mounted by another PPVPN user from a privileged position.
   (E.g. a PPVPN user might be able to monopolize network resources and
   thus prevent other PPVPNs from accessing those resources.)

3.1.3.  Unauthorized Observation/Modification/Deletion of Data Traffic

   This refers to "sniffing" VPN packets and examining their contents.
   It also includes modifying the contents of packets in flight, or
   causing packets in flight to be discarded.  Such attacks would
   typically occur on links in the network but might also occur in a
   compromised node of the network.

3.1.4.  Traffic Pattern Analysis

   This refers to "sniffing" VPN packets and examining aspects or meta-
   aspects of them that may be visible even when the packets themselves
   are encrypted.  An attacker might gain useful information based on
   the amount and timing of traffic, packet sizes, source and
   destination addresses, etc.

3.1.5.  Impersonation



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   This refers to a broad category of attacks where the attacker
   disguises itself to appear as a legitimate entity.

3.2.    Attacks on the Control Plane

   This category encompasses attacks on the control structures operated
   by the PPVPN service provider.

3.2.1.  Denial of Service Attacks on the Network Infrastructure

   DOS attacks could be mounted specifically against the mechanisms the
   service provider uses to provide PPVPNs e.g. IPsec, MPLS, etc., or
   against the general infrastructure of the service provider e.g. core
   routers.  (The latter case is within the scope of this document only
   if the attack happens in relation with the VPN service, otherwise is
   not a PPVPN-specific issue.)

   Of special concern for PPVPNs is denial of service to one PPVPN user
   caused by the otherwise-legitimate activities of another PPVPN user.
   This can occur for example if one PPVPN user's activities are
   allowed to consume excessive network resources of any sort that are
   also needed to serve other PPVPN users.

3.2.2.  Attacks on the Service Provider Equipment Via Management
 Interfaces

   This includes unauthorized access to service provider infrastructure
   equipment, which access could be used to reconfigure the equipment,
   or to extract information (statistics, topology, etc.) about one or
   more PPVPNs.

   This could be accomplished through malicious entering of the
   systems, or inadvertently as a consequence of inadequate inter-VPN
   isolation in a PPVPN user self-management interface.  (The former is
   not necessarily a PPVPN-specific issue.)

3.2.3.  Cross-connection of Traffic Between PPVPNs

   This refers to the event where expected isolation between separate
   PPVPNs is breached.  This includes cases such as:

    - A site being connected into the "wrong" VPN
    - Two or more VPNs being improperly merged together
    - A point-to-point VPN connecting the wrong two points
    - Any packet or frame being improperly delivered outside the VPN it
      is sent in.

   Mis-connection or cross-connection of VPNs has a high likelihood of
   being the result of service provider or equipment vendor error
   rather than malicious action.


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   Anecdotal evidence suggests that the cross-connection threat is one
   of the largest security concerns of PPVPN users (or would-be users).

3.2.4.  Attacks Against PPVPN Routing Protocols

   This encompasses attacks against routing protocols that are run by
   the service provider.  In layer 3 VPNs with dynamic routing this
   would typically relate to the distribution of per-VPN routes as well
   as backbone routes.  In layer 2 VPNs this would typically relate
   only to the distribution of backbone routes.  Specific attacks
   against popular routing protocols have been widely studied and
   described in [Beard].

3.2.5.  Attacks on Route Separation

   "Route separation" refers here to keeping the per-VPN topology and
   reachability information for each PPVPN separate from, and
   unavailable to, any other PPVPN (except as specifically intended by
   the service provider).  This concept is only a distinct security
   concern for those layer 3 VPN types where the service provider is
   involved with the routing within the VPN (i.e. VR, BGP-MPLS, routed
   version of IPsec).  A breach in the route separation could reveal
   topology and addressing information about a PPVPN.  It could also
   cause black hole routing or unintended cross-connection between
   PPVPNs.

3.2.6.  Attacks on Address Space Separation

   In Layer 3 VPNs, the IP address spaces of different VPNs need to be
   kept separate.  In Layer 2 VPNs, the MAC address and VLAN spaces of
   different VPNs need to be kept separate. A breach in this addressing
   separation may result in cross-connection between VPNs.

3.2.7.  Other Attacks on PPVPN Control Traffic

   Besides routing and management protocols (covered separately in the
   previous sections) a number of other control protocols are used for
   membership discovery and tunnel establishment in various PPVPN
   approaches.  These include but may not be limited to:

    - MPLS signaling (LDP, RSVP-TE)
    - IPsec signaling (IKE)
    - L2TP
    - BGP-based membership discovery
    - Database-based membership discovery (e.g. RADIUS-based)

   Attacks might subvert or disrupt the activities of these protocols,
   for example via impersonation or DOS attacks.

4. Defensive Techniques


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   The defensive techniques discussed in this document are intended to
   describe methods by which some security threats can be addressed.
   They are not intended as requirements for all PPVPN implementations.
   The PPVPN provider should determine the applicability of these
   techniques to the provider's specific service offerings, and the
   PPVPN user should assess the value which these techniques add to the
   user's VPN requirements.

   Nothing is ever 100% secure.  Defense therefore involves protecting
   against those attacks that are most likely to occur and/or that have
   the most dire consequences if successful.  For those attacks that
   are protected against, absolute protection is seldom achievable;
   more often it is sufficient just to make the cost of a successful
   attack greater than what the adversary will be willing to expend.

   Successfully defending against an attack does not necessarily mean
   the attack must be prevented from happening or from reaching its
   target.  In many cases the network can instead be designed to
   withstand the attack.  For example, the introduction of non-
   authentic packets could be defended against by preventing their
   introduction in the first place, or by making it possible to
   identify and eliminate them before delivery to the PPVPN user's
   system.  The latter is frequently a much easier task.

4.1.    Cryptographic techniques

   PPVPN defenses against a wide variety of attacks can be enhanced by
   the proper application of cryptographic techniques.  These are the
   same cryptographic techniques which are applicable to general
   network communications.  In general, these techniques can provide
   privacy (encryption) of communication between devices,
   authentication of the identities of the devices, and can ensure that
   the data being communicated is not changed during transit.

   Privacy is a key part (the middle name!) of any Virtual Private
   Network.  In a PPVPN, privacy can be provided by two mechanisms:
   traffic separation and encryption.  In this section we focus on
   encryption.

   There are a few reasons why encryption may not be a standard
   offering within every PPVPN service.  Encryption adds an additional
   computational burden to the devices performing encryption and
   decryption.  This may reduce the number of user VPN connections
   which can be handled on a device, or otherwise reduce the capacity
   of the device, potentially driving up the provider's costs.
   Typically, configuring encryption services on devices adds to the
   complexity of the device configuration and adds incremental labor
   cost.  Packet lengths are typically increased when the packets are
   encrypted, increasing the network traffic load and adding to the
   likelihood of packet fragmentation with its increased overhead.
   (This packet length increase can often be mitigated to some extent

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   by data compression techniques, but at the expense of additional
   computational burden.)  Finally, some PPVPN providers may employ
   enough other defensive techniques, such as physical isolation or
   filtering/firewall techniques, that they may not perceive additional
   benefit from encryption techniques.  However, the ability of
   currently available encryption techniques to reliably reduce the
   damage from a variety of attacks is likely to make encryption a
   common service offerings in PPVPNs.

   The trust model between the PPVPN provider and the PPVPN user is a
   key element in determining which party manages the encryption keying
   material and the physical devices that perform the encryption.  The
   parts of the network that are not considered to be secure usually
   determine the points where encryption techniques are employed.
   Since the party which manages a device where encryption is applied
   can potentially modify the device configuration to obtain access to
   the unencrypted data, some PPVPN users will insist on maintaining
   control of the end-to-end encryption of their VPN traffic.  Other
   PPVPN users may not trust the security of the links between their
   site's CE and the PPVPN provider's PE, and opt for encryption on the
   PE-CE link.

4.1.1.  IPsec in PPVPNs

   IPsec [RFC2401] [RFC2402] [RFC2406] [RFC2407] [RFC2411] is the
   security protocol of choice for VPN operations at the IP layer
   (Layer 3), as discussed in [SECMECH].  IPsec provides robust
   security for IP traffic between pairs of devices.  Non-IP traffic
   must be converted to IP packets or it cannot be transported over
   IPsec.  Encapsulation is a common conversion method.

   In the PPVPN model, IPsec can be employed to protect IP traffic
   between PEs, between a PE and a CE, or from CE to CE.  CE-to-CE
   IPsec may be employed in either a provider-provisioned or a user-
   provisioned model.  The user-provisioned CE-CE IPsec model is
   currently outside the scope of this document, and outside the scope
   of the PPVPN Working Group.

   IPsec does not itself specify an encryption algorithm.  It can use a
   variety of encryption algorithms, with various key lengths.  There
   are trade-offs between key length, computational burden, and the
   level of security of the encryption.  A full discussion of these
   trade-offs is beyond the scope of this document.  In order to assess
   the level of security offered by a particular IPsec-based PPVPN
   service, some PPVPN users may wish to know the specific encryption
   algorithm and effective key length used by the PPVPN provider.
   However, in practice, any currently recommended IPsec encryption
   offers enough security to substantially reduce the likelihood of
   being directly targeted by an attacker; other weaker links in the
   chain of security are likely to be attacked first.  PPVPN users may

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   wish to use a Service Level Agreement (SLA) specifying the Service
   Provider's responsibility for ensuring data privacy, rather than
   analyzing the specific encryption techniques used in the PPVPN
   service.

   For many of the PPVPN provider's network control messages and some
   PPVPN user requirements, cryptographic authentication of messages
   without encryption of the contents of the message may provide
   acceptable security.  Using IPsec, authentication of messages is
   provided by the Authentication Header (AH) or through the use of the
   Encapsulating Security Protocol (ESP) with authentication only.
   Where control messages require authentication but do not use IPsec,
   then other cryptographic authentication methods are available.
   Message authentication methods currently considered to be secure are
   based on  hashed message authentication codes (HMAC) [RFC2104]
   implemented with a secure hash algorithm such as Secure Hash
   Algorithm 1 (SHA-1) [RFC3174].

4.1.2.  Encryption for device configuration and management

   For configuration and management of PPVPN devices, encryption and
   authentication of the management connection at a level comparable to
   that provided by IPsec is desirable.  However, IPsec is not
   currently available for this purpose on all existing PPVPN devices.

   Some other methods of transporting PPVPN device management traffic
   offer security and privacy comparable to IPsec.
   -  Secure Shell (SSH) offers protection for TELNET [STD-8] or
   terminal-like connections to allow device configuration.
   -  SNMP v3 [STD62] also provides encrypted and authenticated
   protection for SNMP-managed devices.
   -  Transport Layer Security (TLS) (also known as Secure Sockets
   Layer or SSL) [RFC-2246] is probably the emerging standard for
   securing HTTP-based communication, and thus can provide support for
   most XML- and SOAP-based device management approaches.

4.1.3.  Cryptographic techniques in Layer 2 PPVPNs

   Layer 2 PPVPNs will generally not be able to use IPsec to provide
   encryption throughout the entire network.  They may be able to use
   IPsec for PE-PE traffic where it is encapsulated in IP packets, but
   IPsec will generally not be applicable for CE-PE traffic in Layer 2
   PPVPNs.

   Encryption techniques for Layer 2 links are widely available, but
   are not within the scope of this document, nor of IETF documents in
   general.  Layer 2 encryption could be applied to the links from CE
   to PE, or could be applied from CE to CE, as long as the encrypted
   Layer 2 packets can be properly handled by the intervening PE
   devices.  In addition, the upper layer traffic transported by the

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   Layer 2 VPN can be encrypted by the user.  In this case privacy will
   be maintained; however, this is transparent to the PPVPN provider
   and is outside the scope of this document.

4.2.    Authentication

   In order to prevent security issues from some Denial-of-Service
   attacks or from malicious misconfiguration, it is critical that
   devices in the PPVPN should only accept connections or control
   messages from valid sources.  Authentication refers to methods to
   ensure that message sources are properly identified by the PPVPN
   devices with which they communicate.  This section focuses on
   identifying the scenarios in which sender authentication is
   required, and recommends authentication mechanisms for these
   scenarios.

   Cryptographic techniques (authentication and encryption) do not
   protect against some types of denial of service attacks,
   specifically those based on CPU or bandwidth exhaustion. In fact,
   the processing required to decrypt and/or check authentication may
   in some cases increase the effect of DOS attacks. Cryptographic
   techniques may however, be useful against DOS attacks based on
   exhaustion of state information (e.g., TCP SYN attacks).

4.2.1.  VPN Member Authentication

   This category includes techniques for the CEs to verify they are
   connected to the expected VPN.  It includes techniques for CE-PE
   authentication, to verify that each specific CE and PE is actually
   communicating with its expected peer.

4.2.2.  Management System Authentication

   Management system authentication includes the authentication of a PE
   to a centrally-managed directory server, when directory-based "auto-
   discovery" is used.  It also includes authentication of a CE to its
   PPVPN configuration server, when a configuration server system is
   used.

4.2.3.  Peer-to-peer Authentication

   Peer-to-peer authentication includes peer authentication for network
   control protocols (e.g. MPLS, BGP, etc.), and other peer
   authentication (i.e. authentication of one IPsec security gateway by
   another).

4.2.4.  Authenticating Remote Access VPN members



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   This section describes methods for authentication of remote access
   users connecting to a VPN.

4.2.5.  Cryptographic techniques for authenticating identity

   Cryptographic techniques offer several mechanisms for authenticating
   the identity of devices or individuals.  These include the use of
   shared secret keys, one-time keys generated by accessory devices or
   software, user-ID and password pairs, and a range of public-private
   key systems.  Digital certificates using a hierarchical Certificate
   Authority system are among the most useful systems, but they require
   significant investment in infrastructure, and have not been
   universally deployed.

   This section describes or provides references to the specific
   cryptographic approaches for authenticating identity.  These
   approaches provide secure mechanisms for most of the authentication
   scenarios required in operating a PPVPN.

4.3.    Access Control techniques

   This includes packet-by-packet or packet-flow-by-packet-flow access
   control by means of filters and firewalls, as well as means of
   admitting a "session" for a control/signaling/management protocol
   that is being used to implement PPVPNs.

4.3.1.  Filtering

   It is relatively common for routers to filter data packets. That is,
   routers can look for particular values in certain fields of the IP
   or higher level (e.g., TCP or UDP) headers. Packets which match the
   criteria associated with a particular filter may either be discarded
   or given special treatment.

   In discussing filters, it is useful to separate the Filter
   Characteristics which may be used to determine whether a packet
   matches a filter from the Packet Actions which are applied to those
   packets which match a particular filter.

   o Filter Characteristics

   Filter characteristics are used to determine whether a particular
   packet or set of packets matches a particular filter.

   In many cases filter characteristics may be stateless. A stateless
   filter is one which determines whether a particular packet matches a
   filter based solely on the filter definition, normal forwarding
   information (such as the next hop for a packet), and the
   characteristics of that individual packet. Typically stateless
   filters may consider the incoming and outgoing logical or physical

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   interface, information in the IP header, and information in higher
   layer headers such as the TCP or UDP header. Information in the IP
   header to be considered may for example include source and
   destination IP address, Protocol field, Fragment Offset, and TOS
   field. Filters also may consider fields in the TCP or UDP header
   such as the Port fields as well as the SYN field in the TCP header.

   Stateful filtering maintains packet-specific state information, to
   aid in determining whether a filter has been met. For example, a
   device might apply stateless filters to the first fragment of a
   fragmented IP packet. If the filter matches, then the data unit ID
   may be remembered, and other fragments of the same packet may then
   be considered to match the same filter. Stateful filtering is more
   commonly done in firewalls, although firewall technology may be
   added to routers.

   o Actions based on Filter Results

   If a packet, or a series of packets, match a specific filter, then
   there are a variety of actions which may be taken based on that
   filter match. Examples of such actions include:

     - Discard

   In many cases filters may be set to catch certain undesirable
   packets. Examples may include packets with forged or invalid source
   addresses, packets which are part of a DOS or DDOS attack, or
   packets which are trying to access resources which are not permitted
   (such as network management packets from an unauthorized source).
   Where such filters are activated, it is common to silently discard
   the packet or set of packets matching the filter. The discarded
   packets may of course also be counted and/or logged.

     - Set CoS

   A filter may be used to set the Class of Service associated with the
   packet.

     - Count packets and/or bytes

     - Rate Limit

   In some cases the set of packets which match a particular filter may
   be limited to a specified bandwidth. In this case packets and/or
   bytes would be counted, and would be forwarded normally up to the
   specified limit. Excess packets may be discarded, or may be marked
   (for example by setting a "discard eligible" bit in the IP ToS field
   or the MPLS EXP field).

     - Forward and Copy


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   It is useful in some cases to forward some set of packets normally,
   but to also send a copy to a specified other address or interface.
   For example, this may be used to implement a lawful intercept
   capability, or to feed selected packets to an Intrusion Detection
   System.

   o Other Issues related to Use of Packet Filters

   There may be a very wide variation in the performance impact of
   filtering. This may occur both due to differences between
   implementations, and also due to differences between types or
   numbers of filters deployed. For filtering to be useful, the
   performance of the equipment has to be acceptable in the presence of
   filters.

   The precise definition of "acceptable" may vary from service
   provider to service provider, and may depend upon the intended use
   of the filters. For example, for some uses a filter may be turned on
   all the time in order to set CoS, to prevent an attack, or to
   mitigate the effect of a possible future attack. In this case it is
   likely that the service provider will want the filter to have
   minimal or no impact on performance. In other cases, a filter may be
   turned on only in response to a major attack (such as a major DDOS
   attack). In this case a greater performance impact may be acceptable
   to some service providers.

4.3.2.  Firewalls

   Firewalls provide a mechanism for control over traffic passing
   between different trusted zones in the PPVPN model, or between a
   trusted zone and an untrusted zone.  Firewalls typically provide
   much more functionality than filters, since they may be able to
   apply detailed analysis and logical functions to flows, and not just
   to individual packets.  They may offer a variety of complex
   services, such as threshold-driven denial-of-service attack
   protection, virus scanning, acting as a TCP connection proxy, etc.

   As with other access control techniques, the value of firewalls
   depends on a clear understanding of the topologies of the PPVPN core
   network, the user networks, and the threat model.  Their
   effectiveness depends on a topology with a clearly defined inside
   (secure) and outside (not secure).

   Within the PPVPN framework, traffic typically is not allowed to pass
   between the various user VPNs.  This inter-VPN isolation is usually
   not performed by a firewall, but is a part of the basic VPN
   mechanism.  An exception to the total isolation of VPNs is the case
   of "extranets", which allow specific external access to a user's
   VPN, potentially from another VPN.  Firewalls can be used to provide
   the services required for secure extranet implementation.


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   In a PPVPN, firewalls can be applied between the public Internet and
   user VPNs, in cases where Internet access services are offered by
   the provider to the VPN user sites.  In addition, firewalls may be
   applied between VPN user sites and any shared network-based services
   offered by the PPVPN provider.

   Firewalls may be applied to help protect PPVPN core network
   functions from attacks originating from the Internet or from PPVPN
   user sites, but typically other defensive techniques will be used
   for this purpose.

   Where firewalls are employed as a service to protect user VPN sites
   from the Internet, different VPN users, and even different sites of
   a single VPN user, may have varying firewall requirements.  The
   overall PPVPN logical and physical topology, along with the
   capabilities of the devices implementing the firewall services, will
   have a significant effect on the feasibility and manageability of
   such varied firewall service offerings.

4.3.3.  Access Control to management interfaces

   Most of the security issues related to management interfaces can be
   addressed through the use of authentication techniques as described
   in the section on authentication.  However, additional security may
   be provided by controlling access to management interfaces in other
   ways.

   Management interfaces, especially console ports on PPVPN devices,
   may be configured so they are only accessible out-of-band, through a
   system which is physically and/or logically separated from the rest
   of the PPVPN infrastructure.

   Where management interfaces are accessible in-band within the PPVPN
   domain, filtering or firewalling techniques can be used to restrict
   unauthorized in-band traffic from having access to management
   interfaces.  Depending on device capabilities, these filtering or
   firewalling techniques can be configured either on other devices
   through which the traffic might pass, or on the individual PPVPN
   devices themselves.

4.4.    Use of Isolated Infrastructure

   One way to protect the infrastructure used for support of VPNs is to
   separate the resources for support of VPNs from the resources used
   for other purposes (such as support of Internet services). In some
   cases this may make use of a physically separate equipment for VPN
   services, or even a physically separate network.

   For example, PE-based L3 VPNs may be run on a separate backbone not
   connected to the Internet, or may make use of separate edge routers
   from those used to support Internet service.

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   It is common for CE-based L3VPNs to make use of CE devices which are
   dedicated to one specific VPN. In many or most cases CE-based VPNs
   may make use of normal Internet services to interconnect CE devices.

4.5.    Use of Aggregated Infrastructure

   In general it is not feasible to use a completely separate set of
   resources for support of each VPN. In fact, one of the main reasons
   for VPN services is to allow sharing of resources between multiple
   users, including multiple VPNs. Thus even if VPN services make use
   of a separate network from Internet services, nonetheless there will
   still be multiple VPN users sharing the same network resources. In
   some cases VPN services will share the use of network resources with
   Internet services or other services.

   It is therefore important for VPN services to provide protection
   between resource utilization by different VPNs. Thus a well-behaved
   VPN user should be protected from possible misbehavior by other
   VPNs. This requires that limits are placed on the amount of
   resources which can be used by any one VPN. For example, both
   control traffic and user data traffic may be rate limited. In some
   cases or in some parts of the network where a sufficiently large
   number of queues are available each VPN (and optionally each VPN and
   CoS within the VPN) may make use of a separate queue. Control-plane
   resources such as link bandwidth as well as CPU and memory resources
   may be reserved on a per-VPN basis.

   The techniques which are used to provision resource protection
   between multiple VPNs served by the same infrastructure can also be
   used to protect VPN services from Internet services.

   In general the use of aggregated infrastructure allows the service
   provider to benefit from stochastic multiplexing of multiple bursty
   flows, and also may in some cases thwart traffic pattern analysis by
   combining the data from multiple VPNs.

4.6.    Service Provider Quality Control Processes

   Deployment of provider-provisioned VPN services in general requires
   a relatively large amount of configuration by the service provider.
   For example, the service provider needs to configure which VPN each
   site belongs to, as well as QoS and SLA guarantees. This large
   amount of required configuration leads to the possibility of
   misconfiguration.

   It is important for the service provider to have operational
   processes in place to reduce the potential impact of
   misconfiguration. CE to CE authentication may also be used to detect
   misconfiguration when it occurs.


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4.7.    Deployment of Testable PPVPN Service.

   This refers to solutions that can be readily tested to make sure
   they are configured correctly.  E.g. for a point-point VPN, checking
   that the intended connectivity is working pretty much ensures that
   there is not connectivity to some unintended site.


5. Monitoring, Detection, and Reporting of Security Attacks

   A PPVPN service may be subject to attacks from a variety of security
   threats.  Many threats are described in another part of this
   document.  Many of the defensive techniques described in this
   document and elsewhere provide significant levels of protection from
   a variety of threats.  However, in addition to silently employing
   defensive techniques to protect against attacks, PPVPN services can
   also add value for both providers and customers by implementing
   security monitoring systems which detect and report on any security
   attacks which occur, regardless of whether the attacks are
   effective.

   Attackers often begin by probing and analyzing defenses, so systems
   which can detect and properly report these early stages of attacks
   can provide significant benefits.

   Information concerning attack incidents, especially if available
   quickly, can be useful in defending against further attacks.  It can
   be used to help identify attackers and/or their specific targets at
   an early stage.  This knowledge about attackers and targets can be
   used to further strengthen defenses against specific attacks or
   attackers, or improve the defensive services for specific targets on
   an as-needed basis.  Information collected on attacks may also be
   useful in identifying and developing defenses against novel attack
   types.

   Monitoring systems used to detect security attacks in PPVPNs will
   typically operate by collecting information from the Provider Edge
   (PE), Customer Edge (CE), and/or Provider backbone (P) devices.
   Security monitoring systems should have the ability to actively
   retrieve information from devices (e.g., SNMP get) or to passively
   receive reports from devices (e.g., SNMP traps).  The specific
   information exchanged will depend on the capabilities of the devices
   and on the type of VPN technology.  Particular care should be given
   to securing the communications channel between the monitoring
   systems and the PPVPN devices.

   The CE, PE, and P devices should employ efficient methods to acquire
   and communicate the information needed by the security monitoring
   systems.  It is important that the communication method between
   PPVPN devices and security monitoring systems be designed so that it
   will not disrupt network operations.  As an example, multiple attack

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   events may be reported through a single message, rather than
   allowing each attack event to trigger a separate message, which
   might result in a flood of messages, essentially becoming a denial-
   of-service attack against the monitoring system or the network.

   The mechanisms for reporting security attacks should be flexible
   enough to meet the needs of VPN service providers, VPN customers,
   and regulatory agencies, if applicable.  The specific reports will
   depend on the capabilities of the devices, the security monitoring
   system, the type of VPN, and the service level agreements between
   the provider and customer.


6. User Security Requirements

   This section defines a list of security related requirements that
   the users of PPVPN services may have for their PPVPN service.
   Typically, these user requirements translate into requirement for
   the provider in offering the service.

   The following sections detail various requirements that ensure the
   security of a given trusted zone. Since in real life there are
   various levels of security, a PPVPN may fulfill any number or all of
   these security requirements. Specifically this document does not
   state that a PPVPN must fulfill all of these requirements to be
   secure. As mentioned in the Introduction, it is not within the scope
   of this document to define the specific requirements that each VPN
   technology must fulfill in order to be secure.

6.1.    Isolation

   A virtual private network usually defines the "private" as being
   isolated from other PPVPNs and the Internet. More specifically,
   isolation has several components:

6.1.1.  Address Separation

   Within a PPVPN service, a given PPVPN can use the full Internet
   address range, including private address ranges [RFC1918], without
   interfering with other PPVPNs that use the same PPVPN service. When
   using Internet access through the PPVPN core a NAT functionality can
   be implemented.

   In layer 2 VPNs the same requirement exists for the layer 2
   addressing schemes, such as MAC addresses.

6.1.2.  Routing Separation

   A PPVPN core must maintain routing separation between the trusted
   zones. This means that routing information must not leak from any


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   trusted zone to any other trusted zone, unless this is specifically
   engineered this way, for example for Internet access.

   In layer 2 VPNs the switching information must be kept separate
   between the trusted zones, such that switching information of one
   PPVPN does not influence other PPVPNs or the PPVPN core.

6.1.3.  Traffic Separation

   Traffic from a given trusted zone must never leave this zone, and
   traffic from another zone must never enter this zone. Exceptions are
   where this is specifically engineered that way, for example for
   extranet purposes or Internet access.

6.2.    Protection

   The perception of a completely separated network is that it has
   defined entry points, and only over those is can be attacked or
   intruded. By sharing a common core a PPVPN appears to lose some of
   this clear interfaces to parts outside the trusted zone. Thus one of
   the key security requirements of PPVPN services is that they offer
   the same level of protection as independent networks.

6.2.1.  Protection against intrusion

   An intrusion is defined here as the penetration of a trusted zone
   from outside this zone. This could be from the Internet, another
   PPVPN, or the core network itself.

   The fact that a network is "virtual" must not expose it to
   additional threats over independent networks. Specifically, it must
   not add new interfaces to other parts outside the trusted zone.
   Intrusions from known interfaces such as Internet gateways are
   outside the scope of this document.

6.2.2.  Protection against Denial of Service attacks

   A denial of service attack aims at making services or devices un-
   available to legitimate users. In the framework of this document
   only those DoS attacks are considered which are a consequence of
   providing the network in a virtual way. DoS attacks over the
   standard interfaces into a trusted zone are not considered here.

   The requirement is that a PPVPN is not more vulnerable against DoS
   attacks than if the same network would be provided independently.

6.2.3.  Protection against spoofing

   It is not possible to change the sender identification (source
   address, source label, etc) of traffic in transit, such that by this
   spoofing the integrity of a PPVPN gets violated. For example, if two

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   CEs are connected to the same PE, it must not be possible for one CE
   to send crafted packets that make the PE believe those packets are
   coming from the other CE, thus inserting them into the wrong PPVPN.

6.3.    Confidentiality

   This requirement means that data must be cryptographically secured
   in transit over the PPVPN core network to avoid eavesdropping.

6.4.    CE Authentication

   It is not possible for an outsider to install a CE and pretend to
   belong to a specific PPVPN, to which this CE does not belong in
   reality.

6.5.    Integrity

   Data in transit must be cryptographically secured such that it
   cannot be altered.

6.6.    Anti-Replay

   Data in transit must be cryptographically secured such that it
   cannot be recorded and replayed later.

6.7.    Non-repudiation

   The issue of non-repudiation pertains to PPVPN services, as well as
   any other service. However, it is typically handled at the
   application level, and is not therefore within the scope of this
   document.

7. Provider Security Requirements

   In this section, we discuss additional security requirements that
   the provider may have in order to secure its network infrastructure
   as it provides PPVPN services.

   The PPVPN service provider requirements defined here are the
   requirements for the PPVPN core in the reference model.  The core
   network can be implemented with different types of network
   technologies, and each core network may use different technologies
   to provide the PPVPN services to users with different levels of
   offered security. Therefore, a PPVPN service provider may fulfill
   any number of the security requirements listed in this section. This
   document does not state that a PPVPN must fulfill all of these
   requirements to be secure.

   These requirements are focused on: 1) how to protect the PPVPN core
   from various attacks outside the core including PPVPN users and non-
   PPVPN alike, both accidentally and maliciously, 2) how to protect

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   the PPVPN user VPNs and sites themselves. Note that a PPVPN core is
   not more vulnerable against attacks than a core that does not
   provide PPVPNs. However providing PPVPN services over such a core
   may need lead to additional security requirements, for the mere fact
   that most users are expecting higher security standards in a core
   delivering PPVPN services.

7.1.    Protection within the Core Network

7.1.1.  Control Plane Protection

   - Protocol authentication within the core:

   PPVPN technologies and infrastructure must support mechanisms for
   authentication of the control plane. For an IP core, IGP and BGP
   sessions may be authenticated by using TCP MD5 or IPSec. If an MPLS
   core is used, LDP sessions may be authenticated by use TCP MD5, in
   addition IGP and BGP authentication should also be considered. For a
   core providing Layer 2 services, PE to PE authentication may also be
   used via IPSec.

   With the cost of authentication coming down rapidly, the application
   of control plane authentication may not increase the cost of
   implementation for providers significantly, and will help to improve
   the security of the core. If the core is dedicated to VPN services                                      rd   and without any interconnects to 3  parties then this may reduce the
   requirement for authentication of the core control plane.


   - Elements protection

   Here we discuss means to hide the providers infrastructure nodes.

   A PPVPN provider may make the infrastructure routers (P and PE
   routers) unreachable from outside users and unauthorized internal
   users. For example, separate address space may be used for the
   infrastructure loopbacks.

   Normal TTL propagation may be altered to make the backbone look like
   one hop from the outside, but caution needs to be taken for loop
   prevention. This prevents the backbone addresses to be exposed
   through trace route, however this must also be assessed against
   operational requirements for end to end fault tracing.

   An Internet backbone core may be re-engineered to make Internet
   routing an edge function, for example, using MPLS label switching
   for all traffic within the core and possibly make the Internet a VPN
   within the PPVPN core itself. This helps to detach Internet access
   from PPVPN services.



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   Separating control plane, data plane, and management plane
   functionality in terms of hardware and software may be implemented
   on the PE devices to improve security. This may help to limit the
   problems when attacked in one particular area, and may allow each
   plane to implement additional security measurement separately.

   PEs are often more vulnerable to attack than P routers, since PEs
   cannot be made unreachable to outside users by their very nature.
   Access to core trunk resources can be controlled on a per user basis
   by the application of inbound rate-limiting/shaping, this can be
   further enhanced on a per Class of Service basis (see section 7.2.3)


   In the PE, using separate routing processes for Internet and PPVPN
   service may help to improve the PPVPN security and better protect
   VPN customers. Furthermore, if the resources, such as CPU and
   Memory, may be further separated based on applications, or even
   individual VPNs, it may help to provide improved security and
   reliability to individual VPN customers.

   Many of these were not particular issues when an IP core was
   designed to support Internet services only. When providing PPVPN
   services, new requirements are introduced to satisfy the security
   needs for VPN services. Similar consideration apply to L2 VPN
   services.

7.1.2.  Data Plane Protection

   PPVPN using IPSec technologies provide VPN users with encryption of
   secure user data.

   In todayÆs MPLS, ATM, or Frame Relay networks, encryption is not
   provided as a basic feature. Mechanisms can be used to secure the
   MPLS data plane to secure the data carried over MPLS core.
   Additionally, if the core is dedicated to VPN services and without                                  rd   any external interconnects to 3  party networks then there is no
   obvious need for encryption of the user data plane.

   IPSec / L3 PPVPN technologies inter-working, or IPSec /L2 PPVPN
   technologies inter-working may be used to provide PPVPN users end-
   to-end PPVPN services.


7.2.    Protection on the User Access Link

   Peer / Neighbor protocol authentication may be used to enhance
   security. For example, BGP MD5 authentication may be used to enhance
   security on PE-CE links using eBGP. In the case of Inter-provider
   connection, authentication / encryption mechanisms between ASes,
   such as IPSec, may be used.


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   WAN link address space separation for VPN and non-VPN users may be
   implemented to improve security in order to protect VPN customers if
   multiple services are provided on the same PE platform.

   Firewall / Filtering: access control mechanisms can be used to
   filter out any packets destined for the service providerÆs
   infrastructure prefix or eliminate routes identified as illegitimate
   routes.

   Rate limiting may be applied to the user interface/logical
   interfaces against DDOS bandwidth attack. This is very helpful when
   the PE device is supporting both VPN services and Internet Services,
   especially when supporting VPN and Internet Services on the same
   physical interfaces through different logical interfaces.

   7.2.1 Link Authentication

   Authentication mechanisms can be employed to validate site access to
   the PPVPN network via fixed or logical (e.g. L2TP, IPSec)
   connections. Where the user wishes to hold the æsecretÆ associated
   to acceptance of the access and site into the VPN, then PPVPN based
   solutions require the flexability for either direct authentication
   by the PE itself or interaction with a customer PPVPN authentication
   server. Mechanisms are required in the latter case to ensure that
   the interaction between the PE and the customer authentication
   server is controlled e.g. limiting it simply to an exchange in
   relation to the authentication phase and with other attributes e.g.
   RADIUS optionally being filtered.

   7.2.2 Access Routing

   Mechanisms may be used to provide control at a routing protocol
   level e.g. RIP, OSPF, BGP between the CE and PE. Per neighbor and
   per VPN routing policies may be established to enhance security and
   reduce the impact of a malicious or non-malicious attack on the PE,
   in particular the following mechanisms should be considered:
    - limiting the number of prefixes that may be advertised on a per
      access basis into the PE. Appropriate action may be taken should
      a limit be exceeded e.g. the PE shutting down the peer session to
      the CE
    - applying route dampening at the PE on received routing updates
    - definition of a per VPN prefix limit after which additional
      prefixes will not be added to the VPN routing table.


   7.2.3 Access QoS

   PPVPN providers offering QoS enabled services require mechanisms to
   ensure that individual accesses are validated against their
   subscribed QOS profile and as such gain access to core resources
   that match their service profile.  Mechanisms such as per Class of

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   service rate limiting/traffic shaping on ingress to the PPVPN core
   are one option in providing this level of control.  Such mechanisms
   may require the per Class of Service profile to be enforced either
   by marking, remarking or discard of traffic outside of profile.

   7.2.4 Customer VPN monitoring tools

   End users requiring visibility of VPN specific statistics on the
   core e.g. routing table, interface status, QoS statistics, impose
   requirements for mechanisms at the PE to both validate the incoming
   user and limit the views available to that particular users VPN.
   Mechanisms should also be considered to ensure that such access
   cannot be used a means of a DOS attack (either malicious or
   accidental) on the PE itself. This could be accomplished through
   either separation of these resources within the PE itself or via the
   capability to rate-limit on a per VPN basis such traffic.


7.3.    General Requirements for PPVPN Providers

   The PPVPN providers must support the users security requirements as
   listed in Section 6. Depending on the technologies used, these
   requirements may include:

   - User control plane separation û routing isolation
   - User address space separation û supporting overlapping addresses
     from different VPNs
   - User data plane separation û one VPN traffic cannot be intercepted
     by other VPNs or any other users.
   - Protection against intrusion, DOS attacks and spoofing
   - Access Authentication
   - Techniques highlighted through this document identify
     methodologies for the protection of PPVPN resources and
     infrastructure. By following these approaches a secure VPN service
     can be delivered without the absolute need for cryptographic
     techniques

   Equipment hardware/software bugs leading to breaches in security are
   not within the scope of this document.


8. Security Evaluation of PPVPN Technologies

   This section presents a brief template that may be used to evaluate
   and summarize how a given PPVPN approach (solution) measures up
   against the PPVPN Security Framework.  An evaluation of a given
   PPVPN approach using this template should appear in the
   applicability statement for each PPVPN approach.

8.1.    Evaluating the Template


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   The template is in the form of a list of security assertions.  For
   each assertion the approach is assessed and one or more of the
   following ratings is assigned:

   - The requirement is not applicable to the VPN approach because ...
     (fill in reason)

   - The base VPN approach completely addresses the requirement by ...
     (fill in technique)

   - The base VPN approach partially addresses the requirement by ...
     (fill in technique)

   - An optional extension to the VPN approach completely addresses the
     requirement by ... (fill in technique)

   - An optional extension to the VPN approach partially addresses the
     requirement by ... (fill in technique)

   - In the VPN approach, the requirement is addressed in a way that is
     beyond the scope of the VPN approach.  (Explain)

   - The VPN approach does not meet the requirement.

8.2.    Template

   1. The approach provides a completely separate IP address space for
      each VPN.

   2. The approach provides a completely separate MAC address space for
      each VPN.

   3. The approach provides a completely separate VLAN ID space for
      each VPN.

   4. The approach provides a completely separate IP routing table for
      each VPN.

   5. The approach provides a completely separate MAC layer forwarding
      table for each VPN.

   6. The approach provides a means to prevent improper cross-
      connection of sites in separate VPNs.

   7. The approach provides a means to detect improper cross-connection
      of sites in separate VPNs.

   8. The approach protects against PPVPN-specific DOS attacks (i.e.
      Inter-trusted-zone DOS attacks).

      a. Protects the service provider infrastructure against Data

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         Plane or Control Plane DOS attacks originated in a private
         (VPN user) network and aimed at PPVPN mechanisms.
      b. Protects the service provider infrastructure against Data
         Plane or Control Plane DOS attacks originated in the Internet
         and aimed at PPVPN mechanisms.
      c. Protects VPN users against Data Plane or Control Plane DOS
         attacks originated from the Internet, or from other VPN users
         and aimed at PPVPN mechanisms.
      [Editor's note: DOS attacks directed towards general service
      provider infrastructure are not VPN-specific, and are therefore
      out of the scope of this document.]

   9. The approach protects against unstable or malicious operation of
      a VPN user network:

      a. Protects against excessive routing traffic from VPN user
         network to the service provider network.
      b. Protects against excessive or malicious network management
         traffic to the service provider network.
      c. Protects against worms and probes originated in the VPN user
         network to the service provider network.

   10. The approach protects against the introduction of unauthorized
       packets into each VPN.

       a. In the CE-PE link
       b. In a single- or multi- provider PPVPN backbone
       c. In the Internet used as PPVPN backbone

   11. The approach provides confidentiality protection for PPVPN user
       data.

       a. In the CE-PE link
       b. In a single- or multi- provider PPVPN backbone
       c. In the Internet used as PPVPN backbone

   12. The approach provides sender authentication for PPVPN user data.

       a. In the CE-PE link
       b. In a single- or multi- provider PPVPN backbone
       c. In the Internet used as PPVPN backbone

   13. The approach provides integrity protection for PPVPN user data.

       a. In the CE-PE link
       b. In a single- or multi- provider PPVPN backbone
       c. In the Internet used as PPVPN backbone

   14. The approach provides protection against replay for PPVPN user
       data.


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                       PPVPN Security framework              July 2003

       a. In the CE-PE link
       b. In a single- or multi- provider PPVPN backbone
       c. In the Internet used as PPVPN backbone

   15. The approach provides protection against traffic pattern
       analysis for PPVPN user data.

       a. In the CE-PE link
       b. In a single- or multi- provider PPVPN backbone
       c. In the Internet used as PPVPN backbone

   16. The control protocol(s) used for each of the following functions
       provide for message integrity and peer authentication:

       a. VPN membership discovery
       b. Tunnel establishment
       c. VPN topology and reachability advertisement
          i.  PE-PE
          ii. PE-CE
       d. VPN provisioning and management
       e. VPN monitoring and attack detection and reporting

   17. Is the approach subject to any approach-specific vulnerabilities
       not specifically addressed by this template?  If so does the
       approach provide a defense or mitigation for each?


9. Security Considerations

   There are no further security considerations in addition to what
   discussed in the previous sections.

References

   [Beard] D. Beard and Y. Yang, ôKnown Threats to Routing Protocols,ö
   draft-beard-rpsec-routing-threats-00.txt, Oct. 2002.

   [GDOI] M. Baugher, T. Hardjono, H. Harney, B. Weis, "The Group
   Domain of Interpretation,ö draft-ietf-msec-gdoi-07.txt, December
   2002.

   [RFC2104] H. Krawczyk, M. Bellare, R. Canetti, "HMAC: Keyed-Hashing
   for Message Authentication,ö February 1997.

   [RFC-2246] T. Dierks and C. Allen, "The TLS Protocol Version 1.0",
   RFC 2246, January 1999.

   [RFC2401] S. Kent, R. Atkinson, "Security Architecture for the
   Internet Protocol,ö November 1998.

   [RFC2402] S. Kent, R. Atkinson, "IP Authentication Header,ö November

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                       PPVPN Security framework              July 2003

   1998.

   [RFC2406] S. Kent, R. Atkinson, "IP Encapsulating Security Payload
   (ESP),ö November 1998.

   [RFC2407] D. Piper, "The Internet IP Security Domain of
   Interpretation for ISAKMP,ö November 1998.

   [RFC2411] R. Thayer, N. Doraswamy, R. Glenn,  "IP Security Document
   Roadmap,ö November 1998.

   [RFC3174] D. Eastlake, 3rd, and P. Jones, "US Secure Hash Algorithm
   1 (SHA1),ö September 2001.

   [SECMECH] S. Bellovin, C. Kaufman, J. Schiller, "Security Mechanisms
   for the Internet,ö draft-iab-secmech-02.txt, January 2003.

   [STD62] "Simple Network Management Protocol, Version 3,ö RFCs 3411-
   3418, December 2002.

   [STD-8] J. Postel and J. Reynolds, "TELNET Protocol Specification",
   STD 8, May 1983.




Author's Addresses

   Luyuan Fang
   AT&T
   200 Laurel Avenue, Room C2-3B35      Phone: 732-420-1921
   Middletown, NJ 07748                 Email: luyuanfang@att.com

   Michael Behringer
   Cisco
   Avda de la Vega 15                   Phone: 34-639-659-822
   28100 Alcobendas, Madrid             Email: mbehring@cisco.com
   Spain

   Ross Callon
   Juniper Networks
   10 Technology Park Drive             Phone: 978-692-6724
   Westford, MA  01886                  Email: rcallon@juniper.net

   Fabio Chiussi
   Lucent Technologies
   101 Crawfords Corner Rd, Room 4G502  Phone: 732-949-2407
   Holmdel, NJ 07733                    Email: fabio@lucent.com



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                       PPVPN Security framework              July 2003

   Jeremy De Clercq
   Alcatel
   Fr. Wellesplein 1, 2018 Antwerpen    E-mail:
   Belgium                              jeremy.de_clercq@alcatel.be

   Mark Duffy
   Quarry Technologies
   8 New England Executive Park         Phone: 781-359-5052
   Burlington, MA 01803                 Email: mduffy@quarrytech.com

   Paul Hitchen
   BT
   BT Adastral Park
   Martlesham Heath                     Phone: 44-1473-606-344
   Ipswich IP53RE                       Email: paul.hitchen@bt.com
   UK

   Paul Knight
   Nortel Networks
   600 Technology Park Drive    Phone: 978-288-6414
   Billerica, MA 01821          Email: paul.night@nortelnetworks.com

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