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Digital Signature Schemes

The document discusses various digital signature schemes, including public key signature schemes, RSA, ElGamal, and DSA. It explains how these schemes work, the mathematical computations involved in signing and verifying messages, and the security implications of using these algorithms. Additionally, it highlights the importance of key distribution and the potential vulnerabilities associated with each scheme.

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Subrata Nandi
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15 views5 pages

Digital Signature Schemes

The document discusses various digital signature schemes, including public key signature schemes, RSA, ElGamal, and DSA. It explains how these schemes work, the mathematical computations involved in signing and verifying messages, and the security implications of using these algorithms. Additionally, it highlights the importance of key distribution and the potential vulnerabilities associated with each scheme.

Uploaded by

Subrata Nandi
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Digital Signature Schemes

• Public key signature schemes

• the private-key signs (creates) signatures, and the public-key verifies signatures

• only the owner (of the private-key) can create the digital signature,
hence it can be used to verify who created a message

• anyone knowing the public key can verify the signature (provided they
are confident of the identity of the owner of the public key - the key distribution
problem)

• usually don't sign the whole message (doubling the size of information
exchanged), but just a hash of the message

• digital signatures can provide non-repudiation of message origin, since


an asymmetric algorithm is used in their creation, provided suitable timestamps
and redundancies are incorporated in the signature

RSA

• RSA encryption and decryption are commutative, hence it may be used


directly as a digital signature scheme

o given an RSA scheme {(e,R), (d,p,q)}

• to sign a message, compute:

o S = Md(mod R)

• to verify a signature, compute:

o M = Se(mod R) = Me.d(mod R) = M(mod R)

• thus know the message was signed by the owner of the public-key

• would seem obvious that a message may be encrypted, then signed using
RSA without increasing it size

o but have blocking problem, since it is encrypted using the


receivers modulus, but signed using the senders modulus (which may be
smaller)
o several approaches possible to overcome this

• more commonly use a hash function to create a separate MDC which is then
signed

El Gamal Signature Scheme

• whilst the ElGamal encryption algorithm is not commutative, a closely


related signature scheme exists

• El Gamal Signature scheme

• given prime p, public random number g, private (key) random number x,


compute

o y = gx(mod p)

• public key is (y,g,p)

o nb (g,p) may be shared by many users

o p must be large enough so discrete log is hard

• private key is (x)

• to sign a message M

o choose a random number k, GCD(k,p-1)=1

o compute a = gk(mod p)

o use extended Euclidean (inverse) algorithm to solve

o M = x.a + k.b (mod p-1)

o the signature is (a,b), k must be kept secret

o (like ElGamal encryption is double the message size)

• to verify a signature (a,b) confirm:

o ya.ab(mod p) = gM(mod p)

Example of ElGamal Signature Scheme

• given p=11, g=2


• choose private key x=8

• compute

o y = gx(mod p) = 28(mod 11) = 3

• public key is y=3,g=2,p=11)

• to sign a message M=5

o choose random k=9

o confirm gcd(10,9)=1

o compute

▪ a = gk(mod p) = 29(mod 11) = 6

o solve

▪ M = x.a+k.b(mod p-1)

▪ 5 = 8.6+9.b(mod 10)

▪ giving b = 3

o signature is (a=6,b=3)

• to verify the signature, confirm the following are correct:

o ya.ab(mod p) = gM(mod p)

o 36.63(mod 11) = 25(mod 11)

DSA (Digital Signature Algorithm)

• DSA was designed by NIST & NSA and is the US federal standard
signature scheme (used with SHA hash alg)

o DSA is the algorithm, DSS is the standard

o There was considerable reaction to its announcement!

▪ debate over whether RSA should have been used


▪ debate over the provision of a signature only alg

• DSA is a variant on the ElGamal and Schnorr algorithms

• description of DSA

o p = 2L a prime number, where L= 512 to 1024 bits and is a multiple of


64

o q a 160 bit prime factor of p-1

o g = h(p-1)/q where h is any number less than p-1 with h(p-1)/q(mod p)> 1

o x a number less than q

o y = gx(mod p)

• to sign a message M

o generate random k, k<q

o compute

▪ r = (gk(mod p))(mod q)

▪ s = k-1.SHA(M)+ x.r (mod q)

o the signature is (r,s)

• to verify a signature:

o w = s-1(mod q)

o u1= (SHA(M).w)(mod q)

o u2= r.w(mod q)

o v = (gu1.yu2(mod p))(mod q)

o if v=r then the signature is verified

• comments on DSA

o was originally a suggestion to use a common modulus, this


would make a tempting target, discouraged
o it is possible to do both ElGamal and RSA encryption using
DSA routines, this was probably not intended :-)

o DSA is patented with royalty free use, but this patent has been
contested, situation unclear

o Gus Simmons has found a subliminal channel in DSA, could


be used to leak the private key from a library - make sure you trust your library
implementer

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