Institute of Fundamental Technological Research

The recent developments in the mobile technology (mobile phones, middleware) created a need for new methods of protecting the code transmitted through the network. The oldest and the simplest mechanisms concentrate more on integrity of the code itself and on the detection of unauthorized manipulation. The newer solutions not only secure the compiled program, but also the data, that can be gathered during its journey and even the execution state. Some other approaches base on prevention rather than detection. This paper describes a new idea of securing mobile agents. The presented method protects all: the code, the data and the execution state. The proposal is based on a zero-knowledge proof system and a secure secret sharing scheme, two powerful cryptographic primitives. The paper also includes security analysis of the new method and comparison to currently most widespread solutions.

Agent systems, cryptographic protocols, integrity, mobile code

A new agent-based scheme for secure electronic voting is proposed in the paper. The scheme is universal and can be realized in a network of stationary and mobile electronic devices. The proposed mechanism supports the implementation of a user interface simulating traditional election cards, semi-mechanical voting devices or utilization purely electronic voting booths. The security mechanisms applied in the system are based on verified cryptographic primitives: the secure secret sharing scheme and Merkle's puzzles. Due to pre-computations during the generation of agent, the voter need not to do computations. The proposed distributed trust architecture makes the crucial stage of sending votes elastic, reliable, and effective.

electronic elections, secret sharing scheme, Merkle's puzzles, mixnets, mobile agent security, distributed trust