Increasing DHT Data Security by Scattering Data (Invited Paper)

This paper describes methods for increasing the security of data being stored in a distributed hash table (DHT) which leverages the inherent properties of the DHT to provide a secure storage substrate. The methods presented are based upon a framework referred to as "scatter, conceal, and recover" (SCAR). The standard method of securing data in a DHT is to encrypt the data using symmetrical encryption before storing it in the network. SCAR provides this level of security, but also prevents any known cryptoanalisys from being performed. It does this by dividing data into multiple blocks and scattering these blocks within the DHT. The security of SCAR is provided by the property that an attacker is unable to obtain and reassemble the data blocks correctly. However, if the attacker has access to the network communication, the likelihood of a successful attack is significantly increased. This paper defines how such attacks can be executed and provides methods for ensuring data security in spite of such attacks.