+1

From: TLS <tls-boun...@ietf.org> On Behalf Of Bret Jordan
Sent: Tuesday, July 23, 2019 5:52 PM
To: Sean Turner <s...@sn3rd.com>
Cc: Tony Arcieri <basc...@gmail.com>; tls@ietf.org
Subject: Re: [TLS] TLS Impact on Network Security draft updated

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Thanks Sean.

It is critical that we understand and discuss all sides of an issue and address 
all use cases that market has. Beating people down and trying to attack people 
or their use cases is not something we should be doing in formal standards, 
especially here at the IETF.


Thanks,
Bret
PGP Fingerprint: 63B4 FC53 680A 6B7D 1447  F2C0 74F8 ACAE 7415 0050
"Without cryptography vihv vivc ce xhrnrw, however, the only thing that can not 
be unscrambled is an egg."


On Jul 23, 2019, at 4:51 PM, Sean Turner 
<s...@sn3rd.com<mailto:s...@sn3rd.com>> wrote:

Tony,

While you may have concerns or otherwise disagree with the contents of this 
draft, let’s please keep discussion on this list, on all issues, polite and 
professional.

spt
(as co-chair)


On Jul 23, 2019, at 16:05, Tony Arcieri 
<basc...@gmail.com<mailto:basc...@gmail.com>> wrote:

On Sun, Jul 21, 2019 at 6:51 AM Nancy Cam-Winget (ncamwing) 
<ncamw...@cisco..com<mailto:ncamw...@cisco..com>> wrote:
Hi,

Thanks to all the feedback provided, we have updated the 
https://tools.ietf.org/html/draft-camwinget-tls-use-cases-04

draft.  At this point, we believe the draft is stable and would like to request 
its publication as an informational draft.


I read this draft as the latest attempt in a disinformation campaign by 
manufacturers and users of middleboxes that passively decrypt TLS connections 
to politicize and reframe the argument around what is, at its core, a 
fundamentally insecure practice which is incompatible with technically sound 
and highly desirable protocol improvements to TLS.

I implore you stop using overly broad terminology, euphemisms, weasel words, 
and other deceptive language to argue your points.

This draft is titled "TLS 1.3 Impact on Network-Based Security", but the 
subtext is quite clearly the much narrower subfield of middlebox TLS 
decryption. By using such a grandiose title which is deceptively hiding the 
true subject matter, you are implying that middleboxes are the sum total of 
network security.

The draft begins "Enterprises [...] need to defend their information systems 
from attacks originating from both inside and outside their networks." I am 
co-owner of a company which heavily leverages firewalls for layer 3/4 network 
security in conjunction with TLS. We care deeply about network security, and 
believe that our network is *more secure* specifically because we *don't* 
perform middlebox interception of TLS.

I consider our company to be in the category of enterprise TLS users, and as an 
enterprise TLS user who cares deeply about network security, I do not identify 
whatsoever with the claims this draft is making about the needs of enterprise 
TLS users as a whole. In as much as what it describes to "network security", it 
is but one niche consideration within a vastly broader field, and one which is 
increasingly controversial.

I will point out, since you appear to work at Cisco, that your company works on 
approaches to network security (e.g. malware detection) which avoid decrypting 
TLS:

https://blogs.cisco.com/security/detecting-encrypted-malware-traffic-without-decryption

There is an entire world of network IDS systems beyond middleboxes which 
passively decrypt TLS.

It is factually inaccurate for this draft to be described as "TLS 1.3 Impact on 
Network-Based Security". If you are going to write a draft about the impact of 
TLS 1.3 on middleboxes for passive TLS decryption, please call a spade a spade 
and don't try to hide your true intentions under a bunch of weasel words and 
overly broad claims that make it sound like middlebox-related TLS decryption 
problems are the end of network security as we know it.

My 2c, on behalf of non-middlebox-using enterprise TLS users who feel that 
attempts by middlebox-using enterprise TLS users to weaken TLS in order to 
retain compatibility with their traffic decryption appliances is a threat to 
the security of our enterprise TLS deployments.
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