[Freedombox-discuss] FreedomBox/Unhosted/PageKite for Access Innovation Prize 2012

[Michael Rogers]

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On 08/07/12 20:43, Bjarni Rúnar Einarsson wrote:
> == Scenario Three: Prepackaged Domain/SSL/PageKite ==
> 
> A variation on the above two, where instead of the user registering
> their own domain and SSL certificate, both are provided 
> preconfigured on the FreedomBox itself by the distributor.  A 
> PageKite account could be included/preconfigured as well.
> 
> Pros: A "plug and play" solution, especially if PageKite is 
> included. Compatible with the public web.
> 
> Cons: Requires the user have a public IP.  The FreedomBox 
> distributor becomes a "single point of attack" as they have a 
> central list of which domain belongs to which user.  The 
> distributor is also in a position which allows them to issue new 
> certs and MITM attack users without their knowledge.

These cons are all solvable. The box's installation wizard can guide
the user through choosing a PageKite subdomain, entering payment
details, generating an SSL cert and submitting it to StartSSL. The
user doesn't need a static IP. The hardware distributor doesn't need
to know which PageKite subdomain the user chooses, and doesn't need to
generate or sign certs.

A power user might want to choose a different PageKite provider or
certificate authority - there's no reason the software shouldn't
support that.

Of course, a malicious hardware distributor could insert backdoors in
the software to defeat the "separation of powers", but all the
proposed solutions are vulnerable to backdoors. Users will either have
to trust the distributors or collectively audit the boxes.

Cheers,
Michael
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