Packet authentication and packet encryption/decryption scheme for security gateway

摘要

A packet authentication and packet encryption/decryption scheme for a security gateway suitable for a hierarchically organized network system and a mobile computing environment. For the packet authentication, in addition to the end-to-end authentication at the destination side packet processing device, the link-by-link authentication at each intermediate packet processing device in the packet transfer route is used. The link-to-link authentication data being inspected by intermediate nodes and end-to-end data (different from link-to-link data) being inspected by destination node but not being inspected by intermediate nodes. For the packet encryption/decryption, each packet processing device determines whether or not to encrypt/decrypt the packet according to: an information on the computers which are directly managed by this packet processing device; or the encryption information and the signature information provided in the packet; or the encryption information, the signature information, and the encryption/decryption level information provided in the packer.