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Re: RSA vs. DSA MUST

2000-11-28 09:07:52
Enzo Michelangeli wrote:

really an issue).  I suspect the motivation for a lot of these is that

there's

a requirement to use a FIPS algorithm and DSA is the only choice.  I can't

see

a MUST RSA, MAY DSA as being any real problem, it's just recognising what

has

been reality for the last few years.


We have seen a lot of DSA certificates generated by the U.S. Government. What we haven't seen is a lot of DH certificates (The government uses KEA, which is a form of DH that uses two DH keys and then skipjack to do some key mixing).

Well, there is one problem, and it's due to the store-and-forwad nature of
e-mail which prevents negotiation, making it impossible to know whether a
given algorithm is supported by a new recipient (think, e.g., of signed
messages sent to mailing list).

It's even worse for asymetric algorithms. Even if you had information to allow a negotiated symetric cipher, you are stuck with the asymetric cipher based on the user's certificate.

If we were talking DH, I'd say there isn't much point, but I've seen a lot of DSA stuff running around, and suspect, because of FIPs, to see more of it. I'd vote to make it MUST.


bob




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