RE: ACTION-114: Make proposal to amend api

Hi Ryan,

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Ryan Sleevi [mailto:sleevi@google.com]
> Sent: Friday, September 27, 2013 4:41 PM
> To: Hutchinson Michael
> Cc: Mark Watson; public-webcrypto@w3.org
> Subject: Re: ACTION-114: Make proposal to amend api
>
> Hi Michael,
>
> It's a bit hard to understand without the diff. That said, thanks for
> taking the time to write this up.
>
> Perhaps unsurprisingly, given the concern I expressed during the F2F
> regarding exposing certificates, I do not believe your proposal is
> sufficient nor a good fit. However, it's helpful to understand what you
> see is missing.
>
> On Thu, Sep 26, 2013 at 5:52 PM, Hutchinson Michael
> <Michael.Hutchinson@gemalto.com> wrote:
> > Mark,
> >
> >
> >
> > This is my suggestion as to how to amend the WebCrypto Key Discovery
> > document to support the home automation use case; as requested in
> > ACTION-114.
> >
> >
> >
> > Abstract
> >
> >
> >
> > This specification describes a JavaScript API for discovering named,
> > origin-specific pre-provisioned cryptographic keys for use with the
> > Web Cryptography API. Pre-provisioned keys are keys which have been
> > made available to the UA by means other than the generation,
> > derivation, importation functions of the Web Cryptography API.
> > Origin-specific keys are keys that are available only to a specified
> > origin. Named keys can be identified by their name or their id. The
> > name can either be provisioned by the origin with the key or derived
> > by the UA from information stored within a certificate associated with
> > the key. The id corresponds to a unique identifier for that specific
> > key amongst all pre-provisioned keys from the same origin.
> >
> >
> >
> > 1. Introduction
> >
> >
> >
> > This section is non-normative.
> >
> >
> >
> > The Web Cryptography API [WEBCRYPTO] describes a JavaScript API for
> > performing basic cryptographic operations in web applications.
> > Cryptographic keys in are represented in this API using Key objects.
> > The API provides methods to generate, derive or import cryptographic
> > keying material, so creating Key objects.
> >
> >
> >
> > This document concerns the discovery of cryptographic keys which are
> > made available to the UA by other means. Specifically, this document
> > provides an API for the discovery of cryptographic keys which have
> > been pre-provisioned into a UA or device for use by a specific origin.
> > Such keys are identified by names or ids which are assumed to be known
> > to the origin in question and thus they are referred to as named
> origin-specific pre-provisioned keys.
> >
> >
> >
> > This enables web applications to establish secure proof that the UA
> > has access to a particular pre-provisioned key. Depending on the
> > nature of the key and its associated storage - for example within a
> > Hardware Security Module or available only within a Trusted Execution
> > Environment - further properties of the device on which the UA is
> running may be inferred.
> >
> >
> >
> > The use of pre-provisioned keys requires the informed consent of the
> > user, because such keys may be used for tracking and may reveal
> > information about the users device. The privacy implications of
> > origin-specific pre-provisioned keys are discussed further in Security
> > and Privacy Considerations.
> >
> >
> >
> > 2.1 Out of band key provisioning
> >
> >
> >
> > Web applications may wish to use keys that have been provisioned
> > through means outside the scope of the WebCrypto API. This may include
> > keys that are provisioned through platform-specific native APIs,
> > stored in secure elements such as trusted platform modules (TPMs),
> > individually bound to devices at time of manufacturing or otherwise
> > installed via device-specific provisioning protocols.
> >
> >
> >
> > Such keys may, for example, be used to assist in identifying a device
> > to a specific web service. User agents may choose to expose such keys
> > to web applications after implementing appropriate security and
> > privacy mitigations, including gaining user consent.
> >
> >
> >
> > In this scenario, a web application discovers a pre-provisioned key
> > based on its name and uses it to perform authorized cryptographic
> > operations as part of a protocol with a server. The server may utilize
> > knowledge obtained out-of-band regarding the key's provisioning to
> > make access control and policy decisions, such as inferring the
> > identity of the device and customizing its responses based on that.
> >
> >
> >
> > 2.2 Certificate based key provisioning
> >
> >
> >
> > Web applications may wish to use keys associated with certificates.
> > These certificate keys may have been provisioned through means outside
> > the scope of the WebCrypto API. This may include keys that are
> > provisioned through platform-specific native APIs. These type of keys
> > could be stored in secure elements such as trusted platform modules
> > (TPMs), otherwise installed via device-specific provisioning
> protocols.
> >
> >
> >
> > Such certificate keys may, for example, be used to assist in
> > identifying a specific device to a specific web service. User agents
> > may choose to expose such keys to web applications after implementing
> > appropriate security and privacy mitigations, including gaining user
> consent.
> >
> >
> >
> > In this scenario, a web application discovers certificate keys via a
> > function to return either all or a subset based on either the key name
> > or id. The discovered key can then be used to perform authorized
> > cryptographic operations as part of a protocol with a server. The
> > server may utilize knowledge obtained out-of-band regarding the key's
> > provisioning to make access control and policy decisions, such as
> > inferring the identity of the device and customizing its responses
> based on that.
> >
> >
> >
> > Note: If a User Agents (UA) needs to generate the association between
> > a certificate and the certificate key it does so by extracting the
> > subject CN value and the extended key usage (id-ce 37) into the
> > NamedKey name field and the certificate issuer CN and certificate
> > serial number into the NamedKey id field.
>
> I strongly oppose any further use of the subject common name field.
> It's way too overloaded.
>
> Further, this is completely underspecified with respect to the wide
> variety of forms that may appear within the CN and the EKU.

I actually intentionally underspecified it; I was hoping to elicit a discussion on the best approach.

>
> For example, is it mandatory that a UA normalize a T61String to...
> what, UTF-8? ... and concat that in?
>
> How are the EKU OIDs handled? Is the binary data dropped into the name
> field, or do you express the EKU OIDs in dotted form? What about 'well
> known' OIDs - are they treated as a string (eg:
> "clientAuthentication") or their octet form? How is this decided and
> where is it documented?

My initial theory was that the binary data, as retrieved from the certificate, would be Base64 encoded in order to fit into the DOMString format.
I was trying to keep the UA requirement to a minimum and put the onus on the web application to manage the data itself.
I am open to alternate suggestions.

>
> The issuer CN + serial number is vastly insufficient to uniquely
> identify certificates. Minimally, the entire issuer DN + serial number
> would be required, but even that is insufficient as a disambiguator,
> because two conflicting CAs may issue certificates with the same DN,
> which can then issue sub-certificates with the same CN and serial.

Within the context of SOP would the CN + serial number really not be sufficient to uniquely identify the certificate?
I would be OK with using DN if it was required.

>
> Your design appears to have overloaded "name" and "id" merely because
> they were there, rather than considering what they signified or how they
> would apply to other forms of keys.

Agreed; but these fields do serve my purpose specifically for RSA based certificates.
If others can be specified then we can add them in.

> I would much rather see a separate
> proposal altogether for dealing with certificates (perhaps using the
> supplemental interface to indicate its relation to CryptoKeys), rather
> than trying to shoehorn certificates (which are not NamedKeys) into the
> NamedKey notion.

Maybe this can be done with a future W3C working group.

>
> Also, APIs that enumerate all of [x] are strongly discouraged for
> privacy reasons. Because of this, something like getKeys() strikes me as
> a further API that may be a poor choice.

As with all usages specified in this WG, the intent is that only keys within the SOP would be returned.

>
> If your intent is to present a UI in-band, then I would argue that you
> *do not* want the Keys themselves, but instead want metadata about the
> key, to allow the user to choose, and then request specific access to a
> key the user has chosen.

There needs to be an association between keys and certificates and this is my way of specifying it.

> This ensures that the user doesn't have to
> grant access to, say, their bank signing key, in order for Joe's Social
> Network to be able to locate their Joe's Social Network Key.
>

SOP should prevent the granting issues you propose.

> This is just the tip of the spec issues. I realize I'm purely pointing
> out flaws here, rather than offering a counter-proposal, which may seem
> overly negative. That said, I'm wanting to make sure that we evolve a
> secure-by-default API, and I'm not sure this API quite hits there.

I'm glad someone looked at it and happy that it raised comments/concerns.
This is how it gets better!

>
> I'm happy to critique further design proposals, that allow you to
> iterate and refine the use case as well as understand some of the
> natural concerns these proposals raise.

Thanks!

Regards,
        Michael

>
> Cheers,
> Ryan
>
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > 7.3 CryptoKeys interface
> >
> >
> >
> > WebIDL
> >
> >
> >
> > [NoInterfaceObject]
> >
> > interface CryptoKeys {
> >
> >     Promise getKeys();
> >
> >     Promise getKeyByName (DOMString name);
> >
> >     Promise getKeyById (DOMString id);
> >
> > };
> >
> >
> >
> > 7.3.1 Methods
> >
> >
> >
> > getKeys
> >
> >
> >
> >        When invoked, this method must perform the following steps:
> >
> >
> >
> >        1. Let promise be a new Promise and resolver its associated
> > resolver
> >
> >        2. Return promise and continue executing the following steps
> > asynchronously:
> >
> >            1. Search for keys.
> >
> >
> >
> >               If one or more keys are found
> >
> >                   1. Let the result be an object of type NamedKey[]
> > containing the keys
> >
> >                   2. Execute resolver's resolve(value) algorithm with
> > result as the value argument
> >
> >
> >
> >               Otherwise
> >
> >                   Execute resolver's resolve(value) algorithm with
> > null as the value argument
> >
> >
> >
> > Parameter       Type            Nullable        Optional
> Description
> >
> > N/A
> >
> >
> >
> > Return type: Promise
> >
> >
> >
> > Note: There should be no change to getKeyByName...just copied here for
> > completeness
> >
> > getKeyByName
> >
> >        When invoked, this method must perform the following steps:
> >
> >
> >
> >        1. Let promise be a new Promise and resolver its associated
> > resolver
> >
> >        2. Return promise and continue executing the following steps
> > asynchronously:
> >
> >            1. Search for a key matching the name specifier provided in
> name.
> > A name specifier matches the name of a key if they are identical when
> > expressed as a string of unicode characters.
> >
> >
> >
> >               If a key is found
> >
> >                   1. Let the result be an object of type NamedKey
> > representing the key
> >
> >                   2. Execute resolver's resolve(value) algorithm with
> > result as the value argument
> >
> >
> >
> >               Otherwise
> >
> >                   Execute resolver's resolve(value) algorithm with
> > null as the value argument
> >
> >
> >
> > Parameter       Type            Nullable        Optional
> Description
> >
> > name              DOMString       ✘               ✘
> >
> >
> >
> > Return type: Promise
> >
> >
> >
> > getKeyById
> >
> >        When invoked, this method must perform the following steps:
> >
> >
> >
> >        1. Let promise be a new Promise and resolver its associated
> > resolver
> >
> >        2. Return promise and continue executing the following steps
> > asynchronously:
> >
> >            1. Search for a key matching the id specifier provided in
> > id. A id specifier matches the id of a key if they are identical when
> > expressed as a string of unicode characters.
> >
> >
> >
> >               If a key is found
> >
> >                   1. Let the result be an object of type NamedKey
> > representing the key
> >
> >                   2. Execute resolver's resolve(value) algorithm with
> > result as the value argument
> >
> >
> >
> >               Otherwise
> >
> >                   Execute resolver's resolve(value) algorithm with
> > null as the value argument
> >
> >
> >
> > Parameter       Type            Nullable        Optional
> Description
> >
> > id                      DOMString       ✘               ✘
> >
> >
> >
> > Return type: Promise
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > Regards,
> >
> > Michael
> >
> >
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Received on Friday, 11 October 2013 23:00:44 UTC