Paper 2025/806

BERMUDA: A BPSec-Compatible Key Management Scheme for DTNs

Fiona Fuchs, D3TN GmbH, Technische Universität Dresden
Felix Walter, D3TN GmbH
Florian Tschorsch, Technische Universität Dresden
Abstract

Delay- and Disruption-tolerant Networks (DTNs) enable communication in challenging environments like space and underwater. Despite the need for secure communication, key management remains an unresolved challenge in DTNs. Both DTN security protocols, BSP and BPSec, explicitly exclude key management from their scope, and research in this area remains limited. Traditional Internet-based key management methods are largely unsuitable due to the unique constraints of DTNs. In this paper, we present BERMUDA, a BPSec-compatible key management framework for unicast messaging. Our approach combines established building blocks, including a hierarchical PKI and ECDH, with an adapted version of NOVOMODO for certificate revocation. To evaluate its applicability, we implement a DTN chat application as an example use case and analyze the system's scalability. While our findings demonstrate the feasibility of BERMUDA for DTNs, we also show limitations related to scalability and computational load in resource-constrained scenarios. By bridging the gap between conceptual designs and practical deployment, this work advances key management research in DTNs, contributing to secure communication in these demanding networks.

Note: This paper has been accepted for publication at the IFIP SEC International Workshop on Network and Distributed Systems Security (WNDSS 2025) and will be available at Springer. It will be revised with the DOI reference after publication.

Metadata
Available format(s)
PDF
Category
Applications
Publication info
Published elsewhere. IFIP SEC International Workshop on Network and Distributed Systems Security (WNDSS 2025)
DOI
tbd
Keywords
DTNKey ManagementBPSec
Contact author(s)
fiona fuchs @ d3tn com
felix walter @ d3tn com
florian tschorsch @ tu-dresden de
History
2025-05-09: approved
2025-05-06: received
See all versions
Short URL
https://ia.cr/2025/806
License
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
CC BY-NC

BibTeX

@misc{cryptoeprint:2025/806,
      author = {Fiona Fuchs and Felix Walter and Florian Tschorsch},
      title = {{BERMUDA}: A {BPSec}-Compatible Key Management Scheme for {DTNs}},
      howpublished = {Cryptology {ePrint} Archive, Paper 2025/806},
      year = {2025},
      doi = {tbd},
      url = {https://eprint.iacr.org/2025/806}
}
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