RE: Proposal to anti-phishing

["Don Tuer" <don.tuer () cgi com>]

Two phased authentication is good for security but some obvious
disadvantages include:

        - Cost of hardware tokens
        - Cost of distribution
        - Cost of managing hardware
        - Complexity and user training

        Also will the user need to return their token for replacement if
they forget the PIN?

Thanks
Don     

-----Original Message-----
From: Rafael San Miguel [mailto:smcsoc () yahoo es] 
Sent: Wednesday, January 12, 2005 4:37 AM
To: webappsec () securityfocus com
Cc: Enrique.Diez () dvc es
Subject: Proposal to anti-phishing


Hi all,

I am currently working on a security design that
involves an innovative strategy to combat phishing. I
have something in mind that seems to work allright.

The solution is based in a hardware token that is
delivered to every customer. This token includes the
true certificate that should be presented by the bank
when a customer access his/her account, and a program
that checks if the certificate presented by the
webpage is consistent with the first one. The program
is in read-only memory so that it can't be modified by
anything external to it.

The customer will not be able to access his/her
account if the token is not plugged in, or if the
check fails.
Note that it is the token who sends credentials, not
the client. Also, the token is PIN-protected to
prevent unauthorized use.

I don't see any obvious disadvantages to this
solution.  Hope this helps other people researching
for anti-phishing techniques.

Greetings,

Rafael San Miguel Carrasco

-------------------------------
Rafael San Miguel Carrasco
Consultor Técnico
rafael.sanmiguel () dvc es
+ 34 660 856 647
+ 34 902 464 546
Davinci Consulting - www.dvc.es
Oficina Madrid - Parque empresarial Alvento
Via de los Poblados 1 Edificio A 6ª planta
28033 Madrid
-------------------------------