Public key infrastructure utilization to provide an added level of authenticity to transmitted data
Jason B. Blackmon · Calhoun: The Naval Postgraduate School Institutional Archive (Naval Postgraduate School) · 2010
Information Systems have a need for a level of security to protect the data when being transmitted from one user to another. This thesis points out a method of protecting data utilizing an end-to-end level of security. The idea is grounded in looking at the advantages provided with the Public Key Infrastructure applied to add a level of authenticity to the data on the receiving end of a transmission. The focus of this thesis is protecting data transmitted across the Internet via e-mail using end-to-end security. This thesis proves that applying PKI as data protection to the Information System Application Layer can be used to provide secure end-to-end connections and e-mail is the tool chosen for this thesis to accomplish this goal. The scope of this thesis is to identify authentic and/or confidential communication of data across an Internetwork. The variables to discuss are the ability to digitally sign and secure the data with the digital signature, establishing a connection to an unregulated network, and confirmation of delivery of the data by an alternate user computer. This thesis will focus on using a public key signature point out how this provides authenticity, with a bonus inclusion of the integrity.