Authentication for Dial-in Users

Millions of people use dial-up access for Internet connectivity every day. Each person's computer is configured with the phone number of the Internet service provider (ISP), a user name and a password; management of the connection is done automatically. Behind the scenes, the majority of these connections use a protocol called Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP), reflecting the fact that the connection is just that?a point-to-point connection between two modems that between them provide an unformatted byte-by-byte link. PPP converts the unstructured modem link into a packet-based environment suitable for transporting the IP packets. Importantly, it deals with initial handshaking during which the two ends can negotiate a common feature set. It also has a mechanism for user authentication that we are interested in here. The original PPP (RFC1661) described simple methods to authenticate the user that are still implemented by many ISPs today. When you initiate dial-up access on your computer, you may see a little box on the screen saying, "authenticating…" while this occurs. You might also be asked to enter a password during this phase. These events typically happen during the PPP negotiation.

PPP has two authentication methods described in the original standard; but by current opinion, neither method is considered very strong. In fact, the simplest method, PAP, which is still used by many ISPs, actually sends the user name and password in clear text so any snooper on the link can steal it. The other popular method, CHAP, uses a challenge response mechanism, somewhat similar to the original WEP method. This is much better than PAP but still not considered very strong.

In the dial-up case, the authentication method doesn't need to be very strong. Generally, the worst that happens if someone steals your password is that they get free access to the ISP for which you may be paying. In addition, dial-up lines are much harder to intercept than LANs. However, in some situations a stronger authentication method is needed and the fact that PPP specifies only two weak methods presents a problem. Any new PPP authentication methods would have to be registered with the IANA (Internet Assigned Numbers Authority), and this would create a problem for existing deployed systems that are already "PPP compliant."

To solve this problem, IETF members decided that a more extensible method was needed for PPP. Therefore, the option of EAP was added alongside PAP and CHAP. EAP allows full authentication to be delayed until after the preliminary PPP link is established. RFC2284 "PPP Extensible Authentication Protocol (EAP)" describes how this modification is applied and used with PPP; it says nothing about IEEE 802.1X or wireless LAN (neither of which existed when RFC2284 was written). Recognition of LAN applications is one of the changes proposed in the draft update (draft-ietf-pppext-rfc2284bis-02.txt). This will include references to IEEE 802.1X and IEEE 802.11 in the EAP definition.

The intent of EAP is to enable the use of an authentication algorithm between the supplicant and the authorizer. EAP is designed to allow different types of authentication methods to be used ?that is why it is called extensible. The object is to enable the supplicant to prove his identity to the authorizer. Many methods allow mutual authentication so both parties prove their true identity to the other.

It is common in dial-up networks to have a modem pool in each local phone area to provide cheap access, often called a point of presence (POP). However, the service provider doesn't want to keep a copy of their user database at every POP; they want a central database. This creates a three-party situation that is very similar to that of a corporate Wi-Fi LAN. Using the terminology in our introduction, the user is the supplicant, the POP is the authenticator, and the central database is the authorizer. The protocol used between the POP and the central database to get permission to allow a dial-in user access to the network is called RADIUS (Remote Access Dial-In User Service). We look at RADIUS in more detail later in this chapter.

The organization of a typical dial-in network is shown in Figure 8.1.

Figure 8.1. Organization of Dial-in Network

graphics/08fig01.jpg

Three parties are shown in Figure 8.1:

  • Users (supplicants)

  • Network access server (NAS), located in the POP; authenticator

  • Authentication server (AS), which can be located centrally; authorizer

Note that the term "authorizer" is not an official term, but one that we invented in the introduction to aid in understanding the roles of the parties. From here on, we use the term "authentication server" rather than authorizer because this is most widely used to describe the authorizing entity.

EAP allows a flexible approach so arbitrary and complicated authentication protocols can be exchanged between the supplicant and the authentication server. To allow this, RADIUS has been extended to enable EAP messages to be forwarded by the NAS. The NAS acts as a sort of middleman in the authentication process, just relaying EAP messages between the supplicant and the server until the authentication process completes. When the authentication server makes a decision, the result gets sent to both the NAS and the supplicant in RADIUS/EAP messages. This enables the NAS to either allow access or disconnect the unauthorized user.

This three-party model is in use in thousands of POPs around the world (although few use EAP at this time). This is relevant because the situation in corporate Wi-Fi LAN looks rather similar to Figure 8.1. The supplicant is the Wi-Fi user that wants network access. The equivalent of the NAS is the access point, and there is an authentication server that controls the authorization process. The difference is that IEEE 802.11 provides a structured packet network so that PPP is not needed. In the next section we see that the role of IEEE 802.1X is to provide a similar access control function to that performed by the NAS in Figure 8.1.



    Part II: The Design of Wi-Fi Security