| NSF Org: |
CNS Division Of Computer and Network Systems |
| Recipient: |
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| Initial Amendment Date: | August 23, 2018 |
| Latest Amendment Date: | May 3, 2021 |
| Award Number: | 1801492 |
| Award Instrument: | Continuing Grant |
| Program Manager: |
Phillip Regalia
pregalia@nsf.gov (703)292-2981 CNS Division Of Computer and Network Systems CSE Directorate for Computer and Information Science and Engineering |
| Start Date: | October 1, 2018 |
| End Date: | September 30, 2022 (Estimated) |
| Total Intended Award Amount: | $299,969.00 |
| Total Awarded Amount to Date: | $299,969.00 |
| Funds Obligated to Date: |
FY 2020 = $92,162.00 |
| History of Investigator: |
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| Recipient Sponsored Research Office: |
323 DR MARTIN LUTHER KING JR BLVD NEWARK NJ US 07102-1824 (973)596-5275 |
| Sponsor Congressional District: |
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| Primary Place of Performance: |
GITC 4204, University Heights Newark NJ US 07102-1982 |
| Primary Place of
Performance Congressional District: |
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| Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): |
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| Parent UEI: |
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| NSF Program(s): | Secure &Trustworthy Cyberspace |
| Primary Program Source: |
01002021DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT |
| Program Reference Code(s): |
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| Program Element Code(s): |
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| Award Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Fund Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Assistance Listing Number(s): | 47.070 |
ABSTRACT
The discipline of cryptography provides the basic digital tools used across the globe to ensure data privacy and authenticity. With the broad deployment of these tools--often invisibly embedded in commercial software or hardware--an unconventional but devastating type of cyberattacks have emerged. These attacks involve deploying a cleverly subverted version of a cryptographic tool that appears to function normally, but in fact deliberately reduces security in a covert way that is known only to the subverting party. Such an attack can be carried out by the author of a software package, the manufacturer of a hardware device, or a third party who has contrived to interfere with the deployed product. Recent high-profile incidents of this kind have highlighted the threat associated with these attacks. This project is a comprehensive study of security in this setting, including development of formal models that permit rigorous reasoning about security, design and analysis of new cryptographic tools that resist subversion, and explicit recommendations for hardening the existing cryptographic tools in widespread use.
The project is organized into three main threads. The first focuses on establishing cryptographic security models that expand on classical cryptographic models to adequately reflect malicious subversion attacks: in general, these models call for the design of cryptographic tools to be explicitly coupled with specification of black-box testing procedures so that the combination can guarantee security despite subversion attacks. The second effort pursues development of fundamental cryptographic primitives that achieve security in these new models and application of these primitives as building blocks to construct larger systems and protocols that retain security despite subversion. Finally, to transition these theoretical tools to practice, the project undertakes a practical effort to re-architect existing infrastructural tools, such as the IPSec, SSH and TLS protocols, to harden them against subversion.
This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.
PUBLICATIONS PRODUCED AS A RESULT OF THIS RESEARCH
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PROJECT OUTCOMES REPORT
Disclaimer
This Project Outcomes Report for the General Public is displayed verbatim as submitted by the Principal Investigator (PI) for this award. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this Report are those of the PI and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation; NSF has not approved or endorsed its content.
This project aims to investigate new cryptographic methods and techniques to defend against subversion attacks. We conducted research to correct a potentially subverted hash function and developed a theory of correcting subverted random oracles and a concept of crooked-indifferentiability, which is used as a technical tool to build a subversion resistant digital signature scheme. We also explored other techniques via decentralization and key rotation to deal with potential security breach in different settings.
Regarding intellectual merits, the project led to more than a dozen of publications in cryptography and blockchain, most of which appeared in top security/crypto/blockchain venues. The project also supported several Ph.D. students including Erin Kenney and Yanan Li. Besides the new lines of research initiated for correcting idealized objects, a new type of zero-knowledge proof and others as mentioned above, we also solved some major open problems, including the one in robust randomness extractor and the integrity issue in updatable encryption for secure key rotation.
Regarding broader impacts, we designed new courses on the topic of cryptography, blockchain, and cybersecurity that integrate part of the research results into the curriculum at both the undergraduate and graduate levels at NJIT. We disseminated some of our research results in wider communities including DC Area Crypto Day, and open-sourced several of our research outputs for a general use of end to same end encryption to the public so people can build their own secure storage backend for any App they wish. The project embraced diversity by partially supporting two female Ph.D. students from under-represented groups, including one transgender.
This project laid down a solid foundation for subversion resistant cryptography, expanded the horizon of introducing blockchain to the design of decentralized systems to prevent censorship and others in content delivery, and improved the state of the arts of practical systems including end-to-end messaging and secure storage. The project also delivered a set of tools available for the public, and materials for education, training, and undergraduate student research.
Last Modified: 12/13/2022
Modified by: Chase Q Wu
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