- capable clients, but should be ignored when possible. We specify
- such a protocol below.
-
- Suppose that a DANE TLS client authenticating a TLS server considers
- digest algorithm "BetterAlg" stronger than digest algorithm
- "WorseAlg". Suppose further that a server's TLSA RRset contains some
- records with "BetterAlg" as the digest algorithm. Finally, suppose
- that for every raw public key or certificate object that is included
- in the server's TLSA RRset in digest form, whenever that object
- appears with algorithm "WorseAlg" with some usage and selector it
- also appears with algorithm "BetterAlg" with the same usage and
- selector. In that case our client can safely ignore TLSA records
- with the weaker algorithm "WorseAlg", because it suffices to check
- the records with the stronger algorithm "BetterAlg".
-
- Server operators MUST ensure that for any given usage and selector,
- each object (certificate or public key), for which a digest
- association exists in the TLSA RRset, is published with the SAME SET
- of digest algorithms as all other objects that published with that
- usage and selector. In other words, for each usage and selector, the
- records with non-zero matching types will correspond to on a cross-
- product of a set of underlying objects and a fixed set of digest
- algorithms that apply uniformly to all the objects.
-
- To achieve digest algorithm agility, all published TLSA RRsets for
- use with opportunistic DANE TLS for SMTP MUST conform to the above
- requirements. Then, for each combination of usage and selector, SMTP
- clients can simply ignore all digest records except those that employ
- the strongest digest algorithm. The ordering of digest algorithms by
- strength is not specified in advance, it is entirely up to the SMTP
- client. SMTP client implementations SHOULD make the digest algorithm
- preference order configurable. Only the future will tell which
- algorithms might be weakened by new attacks and when.
-
- Note, TLSA records with a matching type of Full(0), that publish the
- full value of a certificate or public key object, play no role in
- digest algorithm agility. They neither trump the processing of
- records that employ digests, nor are they ignored in the presence of
- any records with a digest (i.e. non-zero) matching type.
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-Dukhovni & Hardaker Expires February 3, 2015 [Page 27]
-\f
-Internet-Draft SMTP security via opportunistic DANE TLS August 2014
-
-
- SMTP clients SHOULD use digest algorithm agility when processing the
- DANE TLSA records of an SMTP server. Algorithm agility is to be
- applied after first discarding any unusable or malformed records
- (unsupported digest algorithm, or incorrect digest length). Thus,
- for each usage and selector, the client SHOULD process only any
- usable records with a matching type of Full(0) and the usable records
- whose digest algorithm is believed to be the strongest among usable
- records with the given usage and selector.
-
- The main impact of this requirement is on key rotation, when the TLSA
- RRset is pre-populated with digests of new certificates or public
- keys, before these replace or augment their predecessors. Were the
- newly introduced RRs to include previously unused digest algorithms,
- clients that employ this protocol could potentially ignore all the
- digests corresponding to the current keys or certificates, causing
- connectivity issues until the new keys or certificates are deployed.
- Similarly, publishing new records with fewer digests could cause
- problems for clients using cached TLSA RRsets that list both the old
- and new objects once the new keys are deployed.
-
- To avoid problems, server operators SHOULD apply the following
- strategy:
-
- o When changing the set of objects published via the TLSA RRset
- (e.g. during key rotation), DO NOT change the set of digest
- algorithms used; change just the list of objects.
-
- o When changing the set of digest algorithms, change only the set of
- algorithms, and generate a new RRset in which all the current
- objects are re-published with the new set of digest algorithms.
-
- After either of these two changes are made, the new TLSA RRset should
- be left in place long enough that the older TLSA RRset can be flushed
- from caches before making another change.
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