Report Number: CS-TR-81-854
Institution: Stanford University, Department of Computer Science
Title: On the security of public key protocols
Author: Dolev, Danny
Author: Yao, Andrew C.
Date: May 1981
Abstract: Recently, the use of public key encryption to provide secure network communication has received considerable attention. Such public key systems are usually effective against passive eavesdroppers, who merely tap the lines and try to decipher the message. It has been pointed out, however, that an improperly designed protocol could be vulnerable to an active saboteur, one who may impersonate another user or alter the message being transmitted. In this paper we formulate several models in which the security of protocols can be discussed precisely. Algorithms and characterizations that can be used to determine protocol security in these models will be given.
http://i.stanford.edu/pub/cstr/reports/cs/tr/81/854/CS-TR-81-854.pdf