Security Issues

The ICE-TEL project (Interworking public key Certification infrastructure for Europe) was set up to investigate solutions to the problem of security on the internet as used by industrial and accademic research.

Securing electronic mail within HMG: part 1, infrastructure and protocol is a UK Government document describing a key-management infrastructure that is proposed for Government communications. It has been made available through the Open Group under the banner of CESG (Communications Electronics Security Group, which is the UK Government's expert group on cryptography).

The above document has been challenged on various grounds by various people. One such challenge, available in gzipped postscript,  is by a group at Cambridge University.

Another security-related issue is that of Trusted Third Parties (TTPs) which are part of a proposed global key-management system. The UK Government issued a proposal in March 1997 detailing possible legislation which would create a licensing regime for TTPs while also making it illegal for non-licenced organisations to offer cryptographic services. The proposals are complex and have generated a lot of heat in discussion. The proposed structure seems less scalable and more controversial than a straight implementation of X.509 V3 certificates.