This ontology covers the domain of security in the field of mobile applications.
A Threat type may be a passive or an active threat.
List of permissions attached to an object.
Actors participating in the realisation and implementation of security services
New tools that should be used for the projection or the application.
Tasks to be performed and which are out of the scope of the technical field.
The application server side may be a web server or a data base back end that the device connects to.
The set of assets that should be protected
Type of encryption in which an encryption key (the public key) is used to encrypt a message, and another encryption key (the private key) is used to decrypt the message.
Biometric identifier is one of the most secure and more reliable ways to authenticate a person’s identity is to verify that person’s innate biological characteristics, which are referred to as biometrics. Each person’s fingerprints, DNA, iris and retinal cell patterns, facial geometry, and heat signature are near unique to that person. These biometric measures, if properly recorded, validated, and embedded in identity credentials that are logically bound to a single person’s identity, can provide the highest degree of identity authentication (From NIST information security Report)
Bluetooth is a Personal Area Network (PAN) standard that enables wireless connections between electronic devices in the 2.4 GHz range over short distances, as an alternative to cables. Designed to be power efficient, Bluetooth has become a common feature in cell phones. Since wireless communications are inherently insecure, a number of basic security provisions have been defined for this standard to mitigate the risks involved. NIST
The simplest way to make a key-dependent one-way hash function is to encrypt a message with a block algorithm in CBC or CFB modes . The hash is the last encrypted block, encrypted once more in CBC or CFB modes.
A digital certificate is a text document that contains general information about its holder with the associated public key and general informations about the validity of the certificate. The digital certificate is signed by the certification authority that has issued it and can be verified a digital signature. The digital certificates, together with the identity data and public key, are stored on a USB-compatible token or a conventional smart card for use as part of strong authentication. When users try to log on to the corporate network, they connect their token with the USB slot or their smart card with the card reader.The digital certificate and public key are sent to the authentication authority via internet. To ensure that the public key sent actually belongs to the person attempting to log on to the corporate networks, the independent certification authority confirms that the public key matches the secret key it has stored
The certification authority provides certificates to bind a set of informations (name, serial number, ...) to a public key.
Locate and isolate critical code from from general code.
Deploy development regimes such as coding standards and documentation methodologies to lead to best practises
The confidentiality service
Several configuration data are stored in the device or sent by the mobile operator.
Technical, quality constraints and others
The entity who is responsable of providing content like ringing tones or multimedia files or any other software.
Time, skills, additional equipments are considered as cost constraints
Digital Signature Algorithm specified by FIPS 186-2
Some applications use records files to store data.
Addiotional development time required for the application or the project.
Mobile terminal equiped with processing capabilities offering connection to wireless networks.
One problem in this area is that drivers are typically written by third parties and drivers are upgraded at different times to the main OS. This causes problems when implementing any validation scheme, or even isolated checking of specific software updates
A general framework for downloading Rights to Devices and sharing Rights in a domain. DRM is invented by the Open Mobile Alliance whose members are mobile phone manufacturers, mobile system manufacturers, operators , and sofware editors.
A digital signature is represented in a computer as a string of binary digits. A digital signature is computed using a set of rules and a set of parameters such that the identity of the signatory and integrity of the data can be verified. An algorithm provides the capability to generate and verify signatures. Signature generation makes use of a private key to generate a digital signature. Signature verification makes use of a public key which corresponds to, but is not the same as, the private key. (http://csrc.nist.gov/publications/fips/fips186-2/fips186-2-change1.pdf)
Elliptic Curve Digital Signature Algorithm (ECDSA) (ANSI X9-62)
Enhanced Messaging Service - An improved message system for GSM mobile phones allowing picture, sound, animation and text elements to be conveyed through one or more concatenated SMS messages. NIST
Discipline which embodies principles, means, and methods for the transformation of data in order to hide its information content, prevent its undetected modification and/or prevent its unauthorised use. (CCITT)
The encryption keys are digital bitstrings that are stored in non-volatile memory, and verification of the identity proceeds by a challenge-response protocol.
A set of sensitive functions under a named group that can get authorization.
A system for determining position by comparing radio signals from several satellites. NIST
Global positioning system coordinates used by some applications.
Mainly the physical device with the embedded memory and processing units.
A server side list of hashed tokens is stored and each consumed token is removed from the list.
All supported image files for mobile devices.
User interaction to confirm the execution of some senstive actions like sending a sms or opening a network connection/
A standard for line-of-sight infrared communication between devices over short distances. NIST
Kerberos is an authentication process that proceeds as follows: A client sends a request to the authentication server (AS) requesting "credentials" for a given server. The AS responds with these credentials, encrypted in the client's key. The credentials consist of 1) a "ticket" for the server and 2) a temporary encryption key ( a "session key"). The client transmits the ticket (which contains the client's identity and a copy of the session key, all encrypted in the server's key) to the server. The session key (now shared by the client and server) is used to authenticate the client, and may optionally be used to authenticate the server. It may also be used to encrypt further communication between the two parties or to exchange a separate sub-session key to be used to encrypt further communication. RFC 1510
The process and procedure for safely storing and distributing accurate cryptographic keys; the overall process of generating and distributing cryptographic key to authorized recipients in a secure manner.
Easy to learn how to use the application.
Special database management systems for embedded applications.
In some situations it is useful to lock the screen display until a task is terminated. This is technique is used to avoid the screen modification until a answer is received.
Message authentication code that include a key for authentication
Mobile device manufacturer which may implement some security features in the device
A certificate which is issued by the device manufacturer like Nokia or Samsung for example.
Security mechanisms used for security services
A limited period of time during which the use of the application will be memorised.
Memory card can be protected with a password each time someone tries to access the card
A function that takes a string (or message) of any length as input and produces a fixed-length string as output,it is used for authentication and message integrity.
Mobile network Cell ID to which the device is attached.
A short-range point-to-point wireless communication technology. The technology is a simple extension of the ISO/IEC 14443 proximity-card standard (contactless card, RFID) that combines the interface of a smartcard and a reader into a single device. An NFC device can communicate with both existing ISO/IEC 14443 smartcards and readers, as well as with other NFC devices, and is thereby compatible with existing contactless infrastructure already in use for public transportation and payment.
The device may be or not equiped with Near Field Communication Ship (NFC).
Password used for once and generated from time, counter and/or key. May be a displayed from a hardware device.
A certificate which is issued by the mobile network operator.
Organizations and associations providing standards in the mobile field arena.
Public-key infrastructure (PKI) consists of protocols, services, and standards supporting applications of public-key cryptography. PKI sometimes refers simply to a trust hierarchy based on public-key certificates, and in other contexts embraces encryption and digital signature services provided to end-user applications as well. RSA (http://www.rsa.com/rsalabs/node.asp?id=2268)
Pseudo Random Number Generation algorithm
ability of Application running on several devices or/and platforms.
A free algorithm provided by RSA security, implemented since 1970.
RSA signature algorithm (American National Standard ANSI X9-31)
Registration authority is an administrative entity which is responsable of verifying the identity of the claimer of a certificate
Sending a Short message to lock the device
Audio files used as rings in mobile devices.
Subscriber Identity Module; A smart card for GSM networks access.
Additional skills that should be acquired to achieve some tasks or goals.
A smart card is any limited-sized card with embedded integrated circuits. The smart card may integrate or not processing capabilities.
Memory available on smart card like SIM, USIM or others;
All the applications and data provided with or installed on the device.
The standard couple of login and password authentication
Steganography is the art and science of writing hidden messages in such a way that no-one, apart from the sender and intended recipient, suspects the existence of the message, a form of security through obscurity. Wikipedia
Data stored either in the device or on the memory card.
Also known as conventional, secret-key, and single-key algorithms; the encryption and decryption key are either the same or can be calculated from one another. Block ciphers and stream ciphers are both used for symmetric encryption.
Transport Layer Security is an IETF standard that is intended to replace the SSL protocol. (IETF Working Group)
True Random Number Generation : extract randomness from physical phenomena and introduce it into computing device.
All limitations related to technologies like the network bandwidth or processor capabilities.
A client and server time synchronization is required for the authentication token verification.
A digital signature that makes possible the verification of the sending time of a message.
Requirement for additional training to use some tools or to do some technalical or management tasks.
Messaging data or data transferred through Internet connection
security authority or its agent, trusted by other entities with respect to security-related activities. In the context of ISO/IEC 9798, a trusted third party is trusted by a claimant and/or a verifier for the purposes of authentication. ISO/IEC 9798
A certificate which is issued by a trusted third party.
The UICC is a generic platform for smart card applications. It has been standardised by ETSI EP SCP (ETSI Project Smart Card Platform) with the aim of defining a physical and logical platform for all smart card applications and to develop advanced security methods for financial transactions, to take an example. Mobey forum
A (U)SIM is a special type of smart card that typically contains a processor and between 16 to 128 KB of persistent Electronically Erasable, Programmable ROM (EEPROM). It also includes RAM for program execution and ROM for the operating system, user authentication and data encryption algorithms, and other applications.
A good response time of the application.
Additional and required types for the ontology
vCard is a virtual electronic business card format.
Security services ontology
Several attacks may be achieved after access to hacked web sites like cross site scripting (XSS) for example.
By passing data through an API where it is known that the API is designed to receive X bytes and we are passing X+N bytes, it can be arranged that the N bytes overflow into an area that was used by other storage (if it is a heap overflow) or will cause the return address to be corrupted (if it is a stack overflow). OMTP
Always set to manufacturer default values
The easy portability of the device make it vulnerable to rabbers and theft.
Most common type involves flooding a host until it cannot respond to legitimate traffic.
The fact of making internal data available to third parties by radio.. In that case,the issuer is the passive victim of the attack. Almost all electrical devices emit radiation to the exterior that can be intercepted by other equipment (radio receivers) causing a leak of information. This threat is frequently but inaccurately called, a TEMPEST attack (“Transient Electromagnetic Pulse Standard”).
The attacker causes an overload or a disruption in the system such that network functions in an abnormal manner. The abnormal behavior could be legitimate subscribers not receiving service, illegitimate subscribers receiving service or the entire network may disabled as a result of the attack.
Bypassing security barries may be performed through a battery removal. For example in a DRM situation, a song may have been played, but if the rights count is not decremented until the end of the song, then removing the power source could result in the user playing the song indefinitely(OMPT).
Bypassing security barries may be performed through a battery removal. For example in a DRM situation, a song may have been played, but if the rights count is not decremented until the end of the song, then removing the memory card could result in the user playing the song indefinitely(OMPT).
UnAuthorized reflash via Firmware Over The Air. FOTA consists in replacing one version of the general OS(s) with another over the Air.
Limited screen display and small keypad ad some aggravation to attacks like phishing for example.
The attacker intercepts information without modifing or deleting them. This is a passive attack. This affects the privacy of the subscriber and the network operator.
The attacker caused an Interruption by destroying resources. The attacker may delete a subscriber data in the entity such as an HLR.
Missing error handling may reveal hidden coding details.
Leaving inputs to a lightweight validation i's one of the most relevant applicationn vulnerability.
The integration of several networkign services like access to PAN, LAN and WAN in the same divice makes hard the set up of access control policies. This integration agravates also the multi-session attacks.
Concurrent processes may cause logical breaks. These breaks could be exploited by malicious code to get access to protected resources.
These attacks belong to the mobile network operator. Most of them require physical air interface equipments like fake base station or modified antenna.
Several untrusted softwares are available for free download or through the trasnfer from an other device. These softwares may be infected with viruses or have trojans. They may also come up with bad code that leads to denial of service.
Software Update can be performed Over The Air without user konwledge or confirmation. These softwares may be infected or trojanized.
Features related to the physical aspect of the device and its properties.
Limited Processing power is boundary for cryptographic enhanced tasks.
In this case the attacker may insert spurious objects into the system. The attacker may insert fake signaling messages, the effects could result in the attacker masquerading as an authority.
Switching from one network to an other should respect security policies.
The procedure of updating the SIM card is a heavy task for the operator.
A cryptanalysis that exploits the predictibility of a particular data segment or a prdicatable relationships among different data segments in a cipher codestream to deduce the plaintext without the knowledge of the decryption key or to substantially reduce the search space such that a brute force attack is feasable.
After developement, applications should be tested with real and different devices and not only with emulators.
Non authenticated SMS or MMS may deal to denial fo service or virus infection.
Exchanging Memory card may lead to virus infection.
Some API, components may be downloaded and used by developers without any security garantee.
Some default configurations of services may be exploited by hackers.
Vulnerabilities during the use of the application or service.
Some services like Bluetooth for example starts automatically which may lead to intrusion and access controls attacks.
Wireless transmission could be exploited by hacker to eavesdrop traffic, analyse authentication tokens and sensitive information in general.
Permissions related to automatically starting a MIDlet, for example by Push Registration.
A Symbian and Nokia application that provides capabilities to install symbian certificates on some Nokia devices
Set of permissions related to sending or receiving messages like SMS
Contains permissions related to network data connections.
Record Management Store are data structure used to store JME data
Read User Data: Set of permissions to read user’s data like phone book or calendar entries