Igor Kurlatov`s presentation

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Transcript Igor Kurlatov`s presentation

Slide 1

Secure Remote Access to an Internal Web
Server

“The security policy usually amounts to total trust of all
insiders and total mistrust of outsiders, where the firewall
defines the boundary.”

Christian Gilmore, David Kormann, and Aviel D. Rubin
ATT Labs - Research

Outline






Requirements vs. the current architecture constrains.
Proposed solution.
Security assessment of the proposed solution.
Conclusion.
Questions.

2

Requirements
• Access to the internal web server from outside of the firewall
boundary.
• Proposed solution should not involve
– changes to the firewall configuration on the network or...
– changes to the firewall policies

3

Environment
• Firewall
– “[Inside user] …can establish TCP connection to hosts
outside the firewall on any port, while inbound connections
are tightly restricted.”
– “[Firewall] … tears down inactive connections every 15 min.”
• DWT (dumb Web Terminal)
– “We strive to treat the DWT as “untrusted” as possible”

4

Possible of the shelf solutions
• Telnet or text-based browser such as Lynx
– Disadvantage:
• HTML travels in plain text over the network
• No support for multimedia
• Tunneling protocols (IPSpec, SSLtelnet).
– Disadvantage:
• requires advance access to the remote client browser
settings and computer settings.

5

Architecture

Firewall
Authentication

Server

Internet
DWT
Proxy

Web
Server
6

Proxy
Control Connection

Web Request

Web Request

Web
Server

Web Reply

Absent

PushWeb

Web Reply

DWT

Firewall

Data Connection

7

Authentication and Security
• User Authentication
– Hash Chaining
– User has to re-enter password every 20 minutes
• Connection Confidentiality
– HTTP over SSL - Secure Socket Layer.

8

Proxy
Control Connection

Web Request

Web Request

Web Reply

Web

PushWeb

Absent

Firewall

Web Reply

DWT

Server

Data Connection

SSL Session
9

Connection Confidentiality
• After the user was successfully authenticated the PushWeb
establishes the SSL connection to the DWT.
• The SSL on the Server is configured to restrict the set of ciphers
supported only to those that provide USA domestic-quality
encryption.

10

Security Assessment
• Compromise of Absent
– DoS attack - not preventable
– Eavesdrop on the user session - SSL prevents it.
– Replay attack - SSL makes it almost impossible.
– Spoofing - user must check SSL certificate.
– Obtain root on PushWeb or access the internal web:
• data cannot be moved over control connection
• the same effort as from any other outside host

11

Security Assessment (Continued)
• Compromise of PushWeb
– PushWeb has limited access rights on the network
– No other services are available from the PushWeb
– No user data stored on the PushWeb

12

Conclusion
• The solution achieved its goal:
– No changes were required to the network infrastructure
– The system provides “...internal Web access from sites such
as terminal rooms and Internet cafes.”

• The system is using well tested protocols - one time password
and SSL, but “… protocol composition is a very hard problem
and has led to security problems in the past.”

13

Questions


To overcome the firewall policy authors used PushWeb / Absent
configuration. Is there any security gain in connecting through Absent
machine as oppose to connecting straight through a firewall?
Firewall

Internet
Web

PushWeb

DWT

Absent

Server
SSL



If there is a gain, than against what type of attacks?

14


Slide 2

Secure Remote Access to an Internal Web
Server

“The security policy usually amounts to total trust of all
insiders and total mistrust of outsiders, where the firewall
defines the boundary.”

Christian Gilmore, David Kormann, and Aviel D. Rubin
ATT Labs - Research

Outline






Requirements vs. the current architecture constrains.
Proposed solution.
Security assessment of the proposed solution.
Conclusion.
Questions.

2

Requirements
• Access to the internal web server from outside of the firewall
boundary.
• Proposed solution should not involve
– changes to the firewall configuration on the network or...
– changes to the firewall policies

3

Environment
• Firewall
– “[Inside user] …can establish TCP connection to hosts
outside the firewall on any port, while inbound connections
are tightly restricted.”
– “[Firewall] … tears down inactive connections every 15 min.”
• DWT (dumb Web Terminal)
– “We strive to treat the DWT as “untrusted” as possible”

4

Possible of the shelf solutions
• Telnet or text-based browser such as Lynx
– Disadvantage:
• HTML travels in plain text over the network
• No support for multimedia
• Tunneling protocols (IPSpec, SSLtelnet).
– Disadvantage:
• requires advance access to the remote client browser
settings and computer settings.

5

Architecture

Firewall
Authentication

Server

Internet
DWT
Proxy

Web
Server
6

Proxy
Control Connection

Web Request

Web Request

Web
Server

Web Reply

Absent

PushWeb

Web Reply

DWT

Firewall

Data Connection

7

Authentication and Security
• User Authentication
– Hash Chaining
– User has to re-enter password every 20 minutes
• Connection Confidentiality
– HTTP over SSL - Secure Socket Layer.

8

Proxy
Control Connection

Web Request

Web Request

Web Reply

Web

PushWeb

Absent

Firewall

Web Reply

DWT

Server

Data Connection

SSL Session
9

Connection Confidentiality
• After the user was successfully authenticated the PushWeb
establishes the SSL connection to the DWT.
• The SSL on the Server is configured to restrict the set of ciphers
supported only to those that provide USA domestic-quality
encryption.

10

Security Assessment
• Compromise of Absent
– DoS attack - not preventable
– Eavesdrop on the user session - SSL prevents it.
– Replay attack - SSL makes it almost impossible.
– Spoofing - user must check SSL certificate.
– Obtain root on PushWeb or access the internal web:
• data cannot be moved over control connection
• the same effort as from any other outside host

11

Security Assessment (Continued)
• Compromise of PushWeb
– PushWeb has limited access rights on the network
– No other services are available from the PushWeb
– No user data stored on the PushWeb

12

Conclusion
• The solution achieved its goal:
– No changes were required to the network infrastructure
– The system provides “...internal Web access from sites such
as terminal rooms and Internet cafes.”

• The system is using well tested protocols - one time password
and SSL, but “… protocol composition is a very hard problem
and has led to security problems in the past.”

13

Questions


To overcome the firewall policy authors used PushWeb / Absent
configuration. Is there any security gain in connecting through Absent
machine as oppose to connecting straight through a firewall?
Firewall

Internet
Web

PushWeb

DWT

Absent

Server
SSL



If there is a gain, than against what type of attacks?

14


Slide 3

Secure Remote Access to an Internal Web
Server

“The security policy usually amounts to total trust of all
insiders and total mistrust of outsiders, where the firewall
defines the boundary.”

Christian Gilmore, David Kormann, and Aviel D. Rubin
ATT Labs - Research

Outline






Requirements vs. the current architecture constrains.
Proposed solution.
Security assessment of the proposed solution.
Conclusion.
Questions.

2

Requirements
• Access to the internal web server from outside of the firewall
boundary.
• Proposed solution should not involve
– changes to the firewall configuration on the network or...
– changes to the firewall policies

3

Environment
• Firewall
– “[Inside user] …can establish TCP connection to hosts
outside the firewall on any port, while inbound connections
are tightly restricted.”
– “[Firewall] … tears down inactive connections every 15 min.”
• DWT (dumb Web Terminal)
– “We strive to treat the DWT as “untrusted” as possible”

4

Possible of the shelf solutions
• Telnet or text-based browser such as Lynx
– Disadvantage:
• HTML travels in plain text over the network
• No support for multimedia
• Tunneling protocols (IPSpec, SSLtelnet).
– Disadvantage:
• requires advance access to the remote client browser
settings and computer settings.

5

Architecture

Firewall
Authentication

Server

Internet
DWT
Proxy

Web
Server
6

Proxy
Control Connection

Web Request

Web Request

Web
Server

Web Reply

Absent

PushWeb

Web Reply

DWT

Firewall

Data Connection

7

Authentication and Security
• User Authentication
– Hash Chaining
– User has to re-enter password every 20 minutes
• Connection Confidentiality
– HTTP over SSL - Secure Socket Layer.

8

Proxy
Control Connection

Web Request

Web Request

Web Reply

Web

PushWeb

Absent

Firewall

Web Reply

DWT

Server

Data Connection

SSL Session
9

Connection Confidentiality
• After the user was successfully authenticated the PushWeb
establishes the SSL connection to the DWT.
• The SSL on the Server is configured to restrict the set of ciphers
supported only to those that provide USA domestic-quality
encryption.

10

Security Assessment
• Compromise of Absent
– DoS attack - not preventable
– Eavesdrop on the user session - SSL prevents it.
– Replay attack - SSL makes it almost impossible.
– Spoofing - user must check SSL certificate.
– Obtain root on PushWeb or access the internal web:
• data cannot be moved over control connection
• the same effort as from any other outside host

11

Security Assessment (Continued)
• Compromise of PushWeb
– PushWeb has limited access rights on the network
– No other services are available from the PushWeb
– No user data stored on the PushWeb

12

Conclusion
• The solution achieved its goal:
– No changes were required to the network infrastructure
– The system provides “...internal Web access from sites such
as terminal rooms and Internet cafes.”

• The system is using well tested protocols - one time password
and SSL, but “… protocol composition is a very hard problem
and has led to security problems in the past.”

13

Questions


To overcome the firewall policy authors used PushWeb / Absent
configuration. Is there any security gain in connecting through Absent
machine as oppose to connecting straight through a firewall?
Firewall

Internet
Web

PushWeb

DWT

Absent

Server
SSL



If there is a gain, than against what type of attacks?

14


Slide 4

Secure Remote Access to an Internal Web
Server

“The security policy usually amounts to total trust of all
insiders and total mistrust of outsiders, where the firewall
defines the boundary.”

Christian Gilmore, David Kormann, and Aviel D. Rubin
ATT Labs - Research

Outline






Requirements vs. the current architecture constrains.
Proposed solution.
Security assessment of the proposed solution.
Conclusion.
Questions.

2

Requirements
• Access to the internal web server from outside of the firewall
boundary.
• Proposed solution should not involve
– changes to the firewall configuration on the network or...
– changes to the firewall policies

3

Environment
• Firewall
– “[Inside user] …can establish TCP connection to hosts
outside the firewall on any port, while inbound connections
are tightly restricted.”
– “[Firewall] … tears down inactive connections every 15 min.”
• DWT (dumb Web Terminal)
– “We strive to treat the DWT as “untrusted” as possible”

4

Possible of the shelf solutions
• Telnet or text-based browser such as Lynx
– Disadvantage:
• HTML travels in plain text over the network
• No support for multimedia
• Tunneling protocols (IPSpec, SSLtelnet).
– Disadvantage:
• requires advance access to the remote client browser
settings and computer settings.

5

Architecture

Firewall
Authentication

Server

Internet
DWT
Proxy

Web
Server
6

Proxy
Control Connection

Web Request

Web Request

Web
Server

Web Reply

Absent

PushWeb

Web Reply

DWT

Firewall

Data Connection

7

Authentication and Security
• User Authentication
– Hash Chaining
– User has to re-enter password every 20 minutes
• Connection Confidentiality
– HTTP over SSL - Secure Socket Layer.

8

Proxy
Control Connection

Web Request

Web Request

Web Reply

Web

PushWeb

Absent

Firewall

Web Reply

DWT

Server

Data Connection

SSL Session
9

Connection Confidentiality
• After the user was successfully authenticated the PushWeb
establishes the SSL connection to the DWT.
• The SSL on the Server is configured to restrict the set of ciphers
supported only to those that provide USA domestic-quality
encryption.

10

Security Assessment
• Compromise of Absent
– DoS attack - not preventable
– Eavesdrop on the user session - SSL prevents it.
– Replay attack - SSL makes it almost impossible.
– Spoofing - user must check SSL certificate.
– Obtain root on PushWeb or access the internal web:
• data cannot be moved over control connection
• the same effort as from any other outside host

11

Security Assessment (Continued)
• Compromise of PushWeb
– PushWeb has limited access rights on the network
– No other services are available from the PushWeb
– No user data stored on the PushWeb

12

Conclusion
• The solution achieved its goal:
– No changes were required to the network infrastructure
– The system provides “...internal Web access from sites such
as terminal rooms and Internet cafes.”

• The system is using well tested protocols - one time password
and SSL, but “… protocol composition is a very hard problem
and has led to security problems in the past.”

13

Questions


To overcome the firewall policy authors used PushWeb / Absent
configuration. Is there any security gain in connecting through Absent
machine as oppose to connecting straight through a firewall?
Firewall

Internet
Web

PushWeb

DWT

Absent

Server
SSL



If there is a gain, than against what type of attacks?

14


Slide 5

Secure Remote Access to an Internal Web
Server

“The security policy usually amounts to total trust of all
insiders and total mistrust of outsiders, where the firewall
defines the boundary.”

Christian Gilmore, David Kormann, and Aviel D. Rubin
ATT Labs - Research

Outline






Requirements vs. the current architecture constrains.
Proposed solution.
Security assessment of the proposed solution.
Conclusion.
Questions.

2

Requirements
• Access to the internal web server from outside of the firewall
boundary.
• Proposed solution should not involve
– changes to the firewall configuration on the network or...
– changes to the firewall policies

3

Environment
• Firewall
– “[Inside user] …can establish TCP connection to hosts
outside the firewall on any port, while inbound connections
are tightly restricted.”
– “[Firewall] … tears down inactive connections every 15 min.”
• DWT (dumb Web Terminal)
– “We strive to treat the DWT as “untrusted” as possible”

4

Possible of the shelf solutions
• Telnet or text-based browser such as Lynx
– Disadvantage:
• HTML travels in plain text over the network
• No support for multimedia
• Tunneling protocols (IPSpec, SSLtelnet).
– Disadvantage:
• requires advance access to the remote client browser
settings and computer settings.

5

Architecture

Firewall
Authentication

Server

Internet
DWT
Proxy

Web
Server
6

Proxy
Control Connection

Web Request

Web Request

Web
Server

Web Reply

Absent

PushWeb

Web Reply

DWT

Firewall

Data Connection

7

Authentication and Security
• User Authentication
– Hash Chaining
– User has to re-enter password every 20 minutes
• Connection Confidentiality
– HTTP over SSL - Secure Socket Layer.

8

Proxy
Control Connection

Web Request

Web Request

Web Reply

Web

PushWeb

Absent

Firewall

Web Reply

DWT

Server

Data Connection

SSL Session
9

Connection Confidentiality
• After the user was successfully authenticated the PushWeb
establishes the SSL connection to the DWT.
• The SSL on the Server is configured to restrict the set of ciphers
supported only to those that provide USA domestic-quality
encryption.

10

Security Assessment
• Compromise of Absent
– DoS attack - not preventable
– Eavesdrop on the user session - SSL prevents it.
– Replay attack - SSL makes it almost impossible.
– Spoofing - user must check SSL certificate.
– Obtain root on PushWeb or access the internal web:
• data cannot be moved over control connection
• the same effort as from any other outside host

11

Security Assessment (Continued)
• Compromise of PushWeb
– PushWeb has limited access rights on the network
– No other services are available from the PushWeb
– No user data stored on the PushWeb

12

Conclusion
• The solution achieved its goal:
– No changes were required to the network infrastructure
– The system provides “...internal Web access from sites such
as terminal rooms and Internet cafes.”

• The system is using well tested protocols - one time password
and SSL, but “… protocol composition is a very hard problem
and has led to security problems in the past.”

13

Questions


To overcome the firewall policy authors used PushWeb / Absent
configuration. Is there any security gain in connecting through Absent
machine as oppose to connecting straight through a firewall?
Firewall

Internet
Web

PushWeb

DWT

Absent

Server
SSL



If there is a gain, than against what type of attacks?

14


Slide 6

Secure Remote Access to an Internal Web
Server

“The security policy usually amounts to total trust of all
insiders and total mistrust of outsiders, where the firewall
defines the boundary.”

Christian Gilmore, David Kormann, and Aviel D. Rubin
ATT Labs - Research

Outline






Requirements vs. the current architecture constrains.
Proposed solution.
Security assessment of the proposed solution.
Conclusion.
Questions.

2

Requirements
• Access to the internal web server from outside of the firewall
boundary.
• Proposed solution should not involve
– changes to the firewall configuration on the network or...
– changes to the firewall policies

3

Environment
• Firewall
– “[Inside user] …can establish TCP connection to hosts
outside the firewall on any port, while inbound connections
are tightly restricted.”
– “[Firewall] … tears down inactive connections every 15 min.”
• DWT (dumb Web Terminal)
– “We strive to treat the DWT as “untrusted” as possible”

4

Possible of the shelf solutions
• Telnet or text-based browser such as Lynx
– Disadvantage:
• HTML travels in plain text over the network
• No support for multimedia
• Tunneling protocols (IPSpec, SSLtelnet).
– Disadvantage:
• requires advance access to the remote client browser
settings and computer settings.

5

Architecture

Firewall
Authentication

Server

Internet
DWT
Proxy

Web
Server
6

Proxy
Control Connection

Web Request

Web Request

Web
Server

Web Reply

Absent

PushWeb

Web Reply

DWT

Firewall

Data Connection

7

Authentication and Security
• User Authentication
– Hash Chaining
– User has to re-enter password every 20 minutes
• Connection Confidentiality
– HTTP over SSL - Secure Socket Layer.

8

Proxy
Control Connection

Web Request

Web Request

Web Reply

Web

PushWeb

Absent

Firewall

Web Reply

DWT

Server

Data Connection

SSL Session
9

Connection Confidentiality
• After the user was successfully authenticated the PushWeb
establishes the SSL connection to the DWT.
• The SSL on the Server is configured to restrict the set of ciphers
supported only to those that provide USA domestic-quality
encryption.

10

Security Assessment
• Compromise of Absent
– DoS attack - not preventable
– Eavesdrop on the user session - SSL prevents it.
– Replay attack - SSL makes it almost impossible.
– Spoofing - user must check SSL certificate.
– Obtain root on PushWeb or access the internal web:
• data cannot be moved over control connection
• the same effort as from any other outside host

11

Security Assessment (Continued)
• Compromise of PushWeb
– PushWeb has limited access rights on the network
– No other services are available from the PushWeb
– No user data stored on the PushWeb

12

Conclusion
• The solution achieved its goal:
– No changes were required to the network infrastructure
– The system provides “...internal Web access from sites such
as terminal rooms and Internet cafes.”

• The system is using well tested protocols - one time password
and SSL, but “… protocol composition is a very hard problem
and has led to security problems in the past.”

13

Questions


To overcome the firewall policy authors used PushWeb / Absent
configuration. Is there any security gain in connecting through Absent
machine as oppose to connecting straight through a firewall?
Firewall

Internet
Web

PushWeb

DWT

Absent

Server
SSL



If there is a gain, than against what type of attacks?

14


Slide 7

Secure Remote Access to an Internal Web
Server

“The security policy usually amounts to total trust of all
insiders and total mistrust of outsiders, where the firewall
defines the boundary.”

Christian Gilmore, David Kormann, and Aviel D. Rubin
ATT Labs - Research

Outline






Requirements vs. the current architecture constrains.
Proposed solution.
Security assessment of the proposed solution.
Conclusion.
Questions.

2

Requirements
• Access to the internal web server from outside of the firewall
boundary.
• Proposed solution should not involve
– changes to the firewall configuration on the network or...
– changes to the firewall policies

3

Environment
• Firewall
– “[Inside user] …can establish TCP connection to hosts
outside the firewall on any port, while inbound connections
are tightly restricted.”
– “[Firewall] … tears down inactive connections every 15 min.”
• DWT (dumb Web Terminal)
– “We strive to treat the DWT as “untrusted” as possible”

4

Possible of the shelf solutions
• Telnet or text-based browser such as Lynx
– Disadvantage:
• HTML travels in plain text over the network
• No support for multimedia
• Tunneling protocols (IPSpec, SSLtelnet).
– Disadvantage:
• requires advance access to the remote client browser
settings and computer settings.

5

Architecture

Firewall
Authentication

Server

Internet
DWT
Proxy

Web
Server
6

Proxy
Control Connection

Web Request

Web Request

Web
Server

Web Reply

Absent

PushWeb

Web Reply

DWT

Firewall

Data Connection

7

Authentication and Security
• User Authentication
– Hash Chaining
– User has to re-enter password every 20 minutes
• Connection Confidentiality
– HTTP over SSL - Secure Socket Layer.

8

Proxy
Control Connection

Web Request

Web Request

Web Reply

Web

PushWeb

Absent

Firewall

Web Reply

DWT

Server

Data Connection

SSL Session
9

Connection Confidentiality
• After the user was successfully authenticated the PushWeb
establishes the SSL connection to the DWT.
• The SSL on the Server is configured to restrict the set of ciphers
supported only to those that provide USA domestic-quality
encryption.

10

Security Assessment
• Compromise of Absent
– DoS attack - not preventable
– Eavesdrop on the user session - SSL prevents it.
– Replay attack - SSL makes it almost impossible.
– Spoofing - user must check SSL certificate.
– Obtain root on PushWeb or access the internal web:
• data cannot be moved over control connection
• the same effort as from any other outside host

11

Security Assessment (Continued)
• Compromise of PushWeb
– PushWeb has limited access rights on the network
– No other services are available from the PushWeb
– No user data stored on the PushWeb

12

Conclusion
• The solution achieved its goal:
– No changes were required to the network infrastructure
– The system provides “...internal Web access from sites such
as terminal rooms and Internet cafes.”

• The system is using well tested protocols - one time password
and SSL, but “… protocol composition is a very hard problem
and has led to security problems in the past.”

13

Questions


To overcome the firewall policy authors used PushWeb / Absent
configuration. Is there any security gain in connecting through Absent
machine as oppose to connecting straight through a firewall?
Firewall

Internet
Web

PushWeb

DWT

Absent

Server
SSL



If there is a gain, than against what type of attacks?

14


Slide 8

Secure Remote Access to an Internal Web
Server

“The security policy usually amounts to total trust of all
insiders and total mistrust of outsiders, where the firewall
defines the boundary.”

Christian Gilmore, David Kormann, and Aviel D. Rubin
ATT Labs - Research

Outline






Requirements vs. the current architecture constrains.
Proposed solution.
Security assessment of the proposed solution.
Conclusion.
Questions.

2

Requirements
• Access to the internal web server from outside of the firewall
boundary.
• Proposed solution should not involve
– changes to the firewall configuration on the network or...
– changes to the firewall policies

3

Environment
• Firewall
– “[Inside user] …can establish TCP connection to hosts
outside the firewall on any port, while inbound connections
are tightly restricted.”
– “[Firewall] … tears down inactive connections every 15 min.”
• DWT (dumb Web Terminal)
– “We strive to treat the DWT as “untrusted” as possible”

4

Possible of the shelf solutions
• Telnet or text-based browser such as Lynx
– Disadvantage:
• HTML travels in plain text over the network
• No support for multimedia
• Tunneling protocols (IPSpec, SSLtelnet).
– Disadvantage:
• requires advance access to the remote client browser
settings and computer settings.

5

Architecture

Firewall
Authentication

Server

Internet
DWT
Proxy

Web
Server
6

Proxy
Control Connection

Web Request

Web Request

Web
Server

Web Reply

Absent

PushWeb

Web Reply

DWT

Firewall

Data Connection

7

Authentication and Security
• User Authentication
– Hash Chaining
– User has to re-enter password every 20 minutes
• Connection Confidentiality
– HTTP over SSL - Secure Socket Layer.

8

Proxy
Control Connection

Web Request

Web Request

Web Reply

Web

PushWeb

Absent

Firewall

Web Reply

DWT

Server

Data Connection

SSL Session
9

Connection Confidentiality
• After the user was successfully authenticated the PushWeb
establishes the SSL connection to the DWT.
• The SSL on the Server is configured to restrict the set of ciphers
supported only to those that provide USA domestic-quality
encryption.

10

Security Assessment
• Compromise of Absent
– DoS attack - not preventable
– Eavesdrop on the user session - SSL prevents it.
– Replay attack - SSL makes it almost impossible.
– Spoofing - user must check SSL certificate.
– Obtain root on PushWeb or access the internal web:
• data cannot be moved over control connection
• the same effort as from any other outside host

11

Security Assessment (Continued)
• Compromise of PushWeb
– PushWeb has limited access rights on the network
– No other services are available from the PushWeb
– No user data stored on the PushWeb

12

Conclusion
• The solution achieved its goal:
– No changes were required to the network infrastructure
– The system provides “...internal Web access from sites such
as terminal rooms and Internet cafes.”

• The system is using well tested protocols - one time password
and SSL, but “… protocol composition is a very hard problem
and has led to security problems in the past.”

13

Questions


To overcome the firewall policy authors used PushWeb / Absent
configuration. Is there any security gain in connecting through Absent
machine as oppose to connecting straight through a firewall?
Firewall

Internet
Web

PushWeb

DWT

Absent

Server
SSL



If there is a gain, than against what type of attacks?

14


Slide 9

Secure Remote Access to an Internal Web
Server

“The security policy usually amounts to total trust of all
insiders and total mistrust of outsiders, where the firewall
defines the boundary.”

Christian Gilmore, David Kormann, and Aviel D. Rubin
ATT Labs - Research

Outline






Requirements vs. the current architecture constrains.
Proposed solution.
Security assessment of the proposed solution.
Conclusion.
Questions.

2

Requirements
• Access to the internal web server from outside of the firewall
boundary.
• Proposed solution should not involve
– changes to the firewall configuration on the network or...
– changes to the firewall policies

3

Environment
• Firewall
– “[Inside user] …can establish TCP connection to hosts
outside the firewall on any port, while inbound connections
are tightly restricted.”
– “[Firewall] … tears down inactive connections every 15 min.”
• DWT (dumb Web Terminal)
– “We strive to treat the DWT as “untrusted” as possible”

4

Possible of the shelf solutions
• Telnet or text-based browser such as Lynx
– Disadvantage:
• HTML travels in plain text over the network
• No support for multimedia
• Tunneling protocols (IPSpec, SSLtelnet).
– Disadvantage:
• requires advance access to the remote client browser
settings and computer settings.

5

Architecture

Firewall
Authentication

Server

Internet
DWT
Proxy

Web
Server
6

Proxy
Control Connection

Web Request

Web Request

Web
Server

Web Reply

Absent

PushWeb

Web Reply

DWT

Firewall

Data Connection

7

Authentication and Security
• User Authentication
– Hash Chaining
– User has to re-enter password every 20 minutes
• Connection Confidentiality
– HTTP over SSL - Secure Socket Layer.

8

Proxy
Control Connection

Web Request

Web Request

Web Reply

Web

PushWeb

Absent

Firewall

Web Reply

DWT

Server

Data Connection

SSL Session
9

Connection Confidentiality
• After the user was successfully authenticated the PushWeb
establishes the SSL connection to the DWT.
• The SSL on the Server is configured to restrict the set of ciphers
supported only to those that provide USA domestic-quality
encryption.

10

Security Assessment
• Compromise of Absent
– DoS attack - not preventable
– Eavesdrop on the user session - SSL prevents it.
– Replay attack - SSL makes it almost impossible.
– Spoofing - user must check SSL certificate.
– Obtain root on PushWeb or access the internal web:
• data cannot be moved over control connection
• the same effort as from any other outside host

11

Security Assessment (Continued)
• Compromise of PushWeb
– PushWeb has limited access rights on the network
– No other services are available from the PushWeb
– No user data stored on the PushWeb

12

Conclusion
• The solution achieved its goal:
– No changes were required to the network infrastructure
– The system provides “...internal Web access from sites such
as terminal rooms and Internet cafes.”

• The system is using well tested protocols - one time password
and SSL, but “… protocol composition is a very hard problem
and has led to security problems in the past.”

13

Questions


To overcome the firewall policy authors used PushWeb / Absent
configuration. Is there any security gain in connecting through Absent
machine as oppose to connecting straight through a firewall?
Firewall

Internet
Web

PushWeb

DWT

Absent

Server
SSL



If there is a gain, than against what type of attacks?

14


Slide 10

Secure Remote Access to an Internal Web
Server

“The security policy usually amounts to total trust of all
insiders and total mistrust of outsiders, where the firewall
defines the boundary.”

Christian Gilmore, David Kormann, and Aviel D. Rubin
ATT Labs - Research

Outline






Requirements vs. the current architecture constrains.
Proposed solution.
Security assessment of the proposed solution.
Conclusion.
Questions.

2

Requirements
• Access to the internal web server from outside of the firewall
boundary.
• Proposed solution should not involve
– changes to the firewall configuration on the network or...
– changes to the firewall policies

3

Environment
• Firewall
– “[Inside user] …can establish TCP connection to hosts
outside the firewall on any port, while inbound connections
are tightly restricted.”
– “[Firewall] … tears down inactive connections every 15 min.”
• DWT (dumb Web Terminal)
– “We strive to treat the DWT as “untrusted” as possible”

4

Possible of the shelf solutions
• Telnet or text-based browser such as Lynx
– Disadvantage:
• HTML travels in plain text over the network
• No support for multimedia
• Tunneling protocols (IPSpec, SSLtelnet).
– Disadvantage:
• requires advance access to the remote client browser
settings and computer settings.

5

Architecture

Firewall
Authentication

Server

Internet
DWT
Proxy

Web
Server
6

Proxy
Control Connection

Web Request

Web Request

Web
Server

Web Reply

Absent

PushWeb

Web Reply

DWT

Firewall

Data Connection

7

Authentication and Security
• User Authentication
– Hash Chaining
– User has to re-enter password every 20 minutes
• Connection Confidentiality
– HTTP over SSL - Secure Socket Layer.

8

Proxy
Control Connection

Web Request

Web Request

Web Reply

Web

PushWeb

Absent

Firewall

Web Reply

DWT

Server

Data Connection

SSL Session
9

Connection Confidentiality
• After the user was successfully authenticated the PushWeb
establishes the SSL connection to the DWT.
• The SSL on the Server is configured to restrict the set of ciphers
supported only to those that provide USA domestic-quality
encryption.

10

Security Assessment
• Compromise of Absent
– DoS attack - not preventable
– Eavesdrop on the user session - SSL prevents it.
– Replay attack - SSL makes it almost impossible.
– Spoofing - user must check SSL certificate.
– Obtain root on PushWeb or access the internal web:
• data cannot be moved over control connection
• the same effort as from any other outside host

11

Security Assessment (Continued)
• Compromise of PushWeb
– PushWeb has limited access rights on the network
– No other services are available from the PushWeb
– No user data stored on the PushWeb

12

Conclusion
• The solution achieved its goal:
– No changes were required to the network infrastructure
– The system provides “...internal Web access from sites such
as terminal rooms and Internet cafes.”

• The system is using well tested protocols - one time password
and SSL, but “… protocol composition is a very hard problem
and has led to security problems in the past.”

13

Questions


To overcome the firewall policy authors used PushWeb / Absent
configuration. Is there any security gain in connecting through Absent
machine as oppose to connecting straight through a firewall?
Firewall

Internet
Web

PushWeb

DWT

Absent

Server
SSL



If there is a gain, than against what type of attacks?

14


Slide 11

Secure Remote Access to an Internal Web
Server

“The security policy usually amounts to total trust of all
insiders and total mistrust of outsiders, where the firewall
defines the boundary.”

Christian Gilmore, David Kormann, and Aviel D. Rubin
ATT Labs - Research

Outline






Requirements vs. the current architecture constrains.
Proposed solution.
Security assessment of the proposed solution.
Conclusion.
Questions.

2

Requirements
• Access to the internal web server from outside of the firewall
boundary.
• Proposed solution should not involve
– changes to the firewall configuration on the network or...
– changes to the firewall policies

3

Environment
• Firewall
– “[Inside user] …can establish TCP connection to hosts
outside the firewall on any port, while inbound connections
are tightly restricted.”
– “[Firewall] … tears down inactive connections every 15 min.”
• DWT (dumb Web Terminal)
– “We strive to treat the DWT as “untrusted” as possible”

4

Possible of the shelf solutions
• Telnet or text-based browser such as Lynx
– Disadvantage:
• HTML travels in plain text over the network
• No support for multimedia
• Tunneling protocols (IPSpec, SSLtelnet).
– Disadvantage:
• requires advance access to the remote client browser
settings and computer settings.

5

Architecture

Firewall
Authentication

Server

Internet
DWT
Proxy

Web
Server
6

Proxy
Control Connection

Web Request

Web Request

Web
Server

Web Reply

Absent

PushWeb

Web Reply

DWT

Firewall

Data Connection

7

Authentication and Security
• User Authentication
– Hash Chaining
– User has to re-enter password every 20 minutes
• Connection Confidentiality
– HTTP over SSL - Secure Socket Layer.

8

Proxy
Control Connection

Web Request

Web Request

Web Reply

Web

PushWeb

Absent

Firewall

Web Reply

DWT

Server

Data Connection

SSL Session
9

Connection Confidentiality
• After the user was successfully authenticated the PushWeb
establishes the SSL connection to the DWT.
• The SSL on the Server is configured to restrict the set of ciphers
supported only to those that provide USA domestic-quality
encryption.

10

Security Assessment
• Compromise of Absent
– DoS attack - not preventable
– Eavesdrop on the user session - SSL prevents it.
– Replay attack - SSL makes it almost impossible.
– Spoofing - user must check SSL certificate.
– Obtain root on PushWeb or access the internal web:
• data cannot be moved over control connection
• the same effort as from any other outside host

11

Security Assessment (Continued)
• Compromise of PushWeb
– PushWeb has limited access rights on the network
– No other services are available from the PushWeb
– No user data stored on the PushWeb

12

Conclusion
• The solution achieved its goal:
– No changes were required to the network infrastructure
– The system provides “...internal Web access from sites such
as terminal rooms and Internet cafes.”

• The system is using well tested protocols - one time password
and SSL, but “… protocol composition is a very hard problem
and has led to security problems in the past.”

13

Questions


To overcome the firewall policy authors used PushWeb / Absent
configuration. Is there any security gain in connecting through Absent
machine as oppose to connecting straight through a firewall?
Firewall

Internet
Web

PushWeb

DWT

Absent

Server
SSL



If there is a gain, than against what type of attacks?

14


Slide 12

Secure Remote Access to an Internal Web
Server

“The security policy usually amounts to total trust of all
insiders and total mistrust of outsiders, where the firewall
defines the boundary.”

Christian Gilmore, David Kormann, and Aviel D. Rubin
ATT Labs - Research

Outline






Requirements vs. the current architecture constrains.
Proposed solution.
Security assessment of the proposed solution.
Conclusion.
Questions.

2

Requirements
• Access to the internal web server from outside of the firewall
boundary.
• Proposed solution should not involve
– changes to the firewall configuration on the network or...
– changes to the firewall policies

3

Environment
• Firewall
– “[Inside user] …can establish TCP connection to hosts
outside the firewall on any port, while inbound connections
are tightly restricted.”
– “[Firewall] … tears down inactive connections every 15 min.”
• DWT (dumb Web Terminal)
– “We strive to treat the DWT as “untrusted” as possible”

4

Possible of the shelf solutions
• Telnet or text-based browser such as Lynx
– Disadvantage:
• HTML travels in plain text over the network
• No support for multimedia
• Tunneling protocols (IPSpec, SSLtelnet).
– Disadvantage:
• requires advance access to the remote client browser
settings and computer settings.

5

Architecture

Firewall
Authentication

Server

Internet
DWT
Proxy

Web
Server
6

Proxy
Control Connection

Web Request

Web Request

Web
Server

Web Reply

Absent

PushWeb

Web Reply

DWT

Firewall

Data Connection

7

Authentication and Security
• User Authentication
– Hash Chaining
– User has to re-enter password every 20 minutes
• Connection Confidentiality
– HTTP over SSL - Secure Socket Layer.

8

Proxy
Control Connection

Web Request

Web Request

Web Reply

Web

PushWeb

Absent

Firewall

Web Reply

DWT

Server

Data Connection

SSL Session
9

Connection Confidentiality
• After the user was successfully authenticated the PushWeb
establishes the SSL connection to the DWT.
• The SSL on the Server is configured to restrict the set of ciphers
supported only to those that provide USA domestic-quality
encryption.

10

Security Assessment
• Compromise of Absent
– DoS attack - not preventable
– Eavesdrop on the user session - SSL prevents it.
– Replay attack - SSL makes it almost impossible.
– Spoofing - user must check SSL certificate.
– Obtain root on PushWeb or access the internal web:
• data cannot be moved over control connection
• the same effort as from any other outside host

11

Security Assessment (Continued)
• Compromise of PushWeb
– PushWeb has limited access rights on the network
– No other services are available from the PushWeb
– No user data stored on the PushWeb

12

Conclusion
• The solution achieved its goal:
– No changes were required to the network infrastructure
– The system provides “...internal Web access from sites such
as terminal rooms and Internet cafes.”

• The system is using well tested protocols - one time password
and SSL, but “… protocol composition is a very hard problem
and has led to security problems in the past.”

13

Questions


To overcome the firewall policy authors used PushWeb / Absent
configuration. Is there any security gain in connecting through Absent
machine as oppose to connecting straight through a firewall?
Firewall

Internet
Web

PushWeb

DWT

Absent

Server
SSL



If there is a gain, than against what type of attacks?

14


Slide 13

Secure Remote Access to an Internal Web
Server

“The security policy usually amounts to total trust of all
insiders and total mistrust of outsiders, where the firewall
defines the boundary.”

Christian Gilmore, David Kormann, and Aviel D. Rubin
ATT Labs - Research

Outline






Requirements vs. the current architecture constrains.
Proposed solution.
Security assessment of the proposed solution.
Conclusion.
Questions.

2

Requirements
• Access to the internal web server from outside of the firewall
boundary.
• Proposed solution should not involve
– changes to the firewall configuration on the network or...
– changes to the firewall policies

3

Environment
• Firewall
– “[Inside user] …can establish TCP connection to hosts
outside the firewall on any port, while inbound connections
are tightly restricted.”
– “[Firewall] … tears down inactive connections every 15 min.”
• DWT (dumb Web Terminal)
– “We strive to treat the DWT as “untrusted” as possible”

4

Possible of the shelf solutions
• Telnet or text-based browser such as Lynx
– Disadvantage:
• HTML travels in plain text over the network
• No support for multimedia
• Tunneling protocols (IPSpec, SSLtelnet).
– Disadvantage:
• requires advance access to the remote client browser
settings and computer settings.

5

Architecture

Firewall
Authentication

Server

Internet
DWT
Proxy

Web
Server
6

Proxy
Control Connection

Web Request

Web Request

Web
Server

Web Reply

Absent

PushWeb

Web Reply

DWT

Firewall

Data Connection

7

Authentication and Security
• User Authentication
– Hash Chaining
– User has to re-enter password every 20 minutes
• Connection Confidentiality
– HTTP over SSL - Secure Socket Layer.

8

Proxy
Control Connection

Web Request

Web Request

Web Reply

Web

PushWeb

Absent

Firewall

Web Reply

DWT

Server

Data Connection

SSL Session
9

Connection Confidentiality
• After the user was successfully authenticated the PushWeb
establishes the SSL connection to the DWT.
• The SSL on the Server is configured to restrict the set of ciphers
supported only to those that provide USA domestic-quality
encryption.

10

Security Assessment
• Compromise of Absent
– DoS attack - not preventable
– Eavesdrop on the user session - SSL prevents it.
– Replay attack - SSL makes it almost impossible.
– Spoofing - user must check SSL certificate.
– Obtain root on PushWeb or access the internal web:
• data cannot be moved over control connection
• the same effort as from any other outside host

11

Security Assessment (Continued)
• Compromise of PushWeb
– PushWeb has limited access rights on the network
– No other services are available from the PushWeb
– No user data stored on the PushWeb

12

Conclusion
• The solution achieved its goal:
– No changes were required to the network infrastructure
– The system provides “...internal Web access from sites such
as terminal rooms and Internet cafes.”

• The system is using well tested protocols - one time password
and SSL, but “… protocol composition is a very hard problem
and has led to security problems in the past.”

13

Questions


To overcome the firewall policy authors used PushWeb / Absent
configuration. Is there any security gain in connecting through Absent
machine as oppose to connecting straight through a firewall?
Firewall

Internet
Web

PushWeb

DWT

Absent

Server
SSL



If there is a gain, than against what type of attacks?

14


Slide 14

Secure Remote Access to an Internal Web
Server

“The security policy usually amounts to total trust of all
insiders and total mistrust of outsiders, where the firewall
defines the boundary.”

Christian Gilmore, David Kormann, and Aviel D. Rubin
ATT Labs - Research

Outline






Requirements vs. the current architecture constrains.
Proposed solution.
Security assessment of the proposed solution.
Conclusion.
Questions.

2

Requirements
• Access to the internal web server from outside of the firewall
boundary.
• Proposed solution should not involve
– changes to the firewall configuration on the network or...
– changes to the firewall policies

3

Environment
• Firewall
– “[Inside user] …can establish TCP connection to hosts
outside the firewall on any port, while inbound connections
are tightly restricted.”
– “[Firewall] … tears down inactive connections every 15 min.”
• DWT (dumb Web Terminal)
– “We strive to treat the DWT as “untrusted” as possible”

4

Possible of the shelf solutions
• Telnet or text-based browser such as Lynx
– Disadvantage:
• HTML travels in plain text over the network
• No support for multimedia
• Tunneling protocols (IPSpec, SSLtelnet).
– Disadvantage:
• requires advance access to the remote client browser
settings and computer settings.

5

Architecture

Firewall
Authentication

Server

Internet
DWT
Proxy

Web
Server
6

Proxy
Control Connection

Web Request

Web Request

Web
Server

Web Reply

Absent

PushWeb

Web Reply

DWT

Firewall

Data Connection

7

Authentication and Security
• User Authentication
– Hash Chaining
– User has to re-enter password every 20 minutes
• Connection Confidentiality
– HTTP over SSL - Secure Socket Layer.

8

Proxy
Control Connection

Web Request

Web Request

Web Reply

Web

PushWeb

Absent

Firewall

Web Reply

DWT

Server

Data Connection

SSL Session
9

Connection Confidentiality
• After the user was successfully authenticated the PushWeb
establishes the SSL connection to the DWT.
• The SSL on the Server is configured to restrict the set of ciphers
supported only to those that provide USA domestic-quality
encryption.

10

Security Assessment
• Compromise of Absent
– DoS attack - not preventable
– Eavesdrop on the user session - SSL prevents it.
– Replay attack - SSL makes it almost impossible.
– Spoofing - user must check SSL certificate.
– Obtain root on PushWeb or access the internal web:
• data cannot be moved over control connection
• the same effort as from any other outside host

11

Security Assessment (Continued)
• Compromise of PushWeb
– PushWeb has limited access rights on the network
– No other services are available from the PushWeb
– No user data stored on the PushWeb

12

Conclusion
• The solution achieved its goal:
– No changes were required to the network infrastructure
– The system provides “...internal Web access from sites such
as terminal rooms and Internet cafes.”

• The system is using well tested protocols - one time password
and SSL, but “… protocol composition is a very hard problem
and has led to security problems in the past.”

13

Questions


To overcome the firewall policy authors used PushWeb / Absent
configuration. Is there any security gain in connecting through Absent
machine as oppose to connecting straight through a firewall?
Firewall

Internet
Web

PushWeb

DWT

Absent

Server
SSL



If there is a gain, than against what type of attacks?

14