PEER-TO-PEER NETWORK

• US 20090119747A1
• Filed: 11/04/2008
• Published: 05/07/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 11/05/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Alcatel-Lucent SA (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Alcatel-Lucent SA (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Tomsu, Marco, Hertle, Andreas, Pierer, Marcel
• Granted Patent: US 8,683,551 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 726/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/064 Hierarchical key distribution, e.g. by multi-tier trusted parties
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0823 using certificates cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication involving certificates H04L9/3263
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/1441 Countermeasures against malicious traffic countermeasures against attacks on cryptographic mechanisms H04L9/002
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/104 Peer-to-peer [P2P] networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1046 Joining mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/1093 Some peer nodes performing special functions

Abstract

In order to provide security within a peer-to-peer network (100) comprising common peers (0, 7, 10, 15, 20, 28) providing the functionality of the network (100), at least one police peer (4, 9, 23) is added to the network (100), said at least one police peer (4, 9, 23) providing security within the network (100) and being certified by a central certification authority (110) managing the certification and positioning of the peers (0, 4, 7, 9, 10, 15, 20, 23, 28).

Claims

1. A peer-to-peer network comprising common peers providing the functionality of the network,

wherein

at least one police peer is added to the network, said at least one police peer providing security within the network and being certified by a central certification authority managing the certification and positioning of the peers.

2. The peer-to-peer network according to claim 1, wherein the network has a structured overlay.

3. The peer-to-peer network according to claim 1, wherein the peers communicate with the certification authority only during the joining process of a new peer.

4. The peer-to-peer network according to claim 1, wherein the certificate of said at least one police peer contains the common signature of a common peer and in addition a police signature.

5. The peer-to-peer network according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of police peers is added to the network, and the police peers are interconnected in an additional overlay network.

6. A method for providing security in a peer-to-peer network comprising common peers, at least one police peer providing security within the network and a central certification authority managing the certification and positioning of the peers,

comprising the following steps managed and/or performed by the at least one police peer:

(a) the functionality of a possible malicious peer is checked;

(b) if the malignance of the malicious peer is affirmed, the certification authority declares the certificate of the malicious peer for invalid and the malicious peer is asked to disconnect from the network;

(c) if the disconnection of the malicious peer in step fails, all other peers close their connections with the malicious peer.

7. The method according to claim 6, comprising in step the possible malicious peer is surrounded by a plurality of police peers.

8. A computer program product implementing the method according to claim 6.