[jdev] Alternate MUC Authentication Mechanisms

[Alex Milowski]

On Sun, Oct 17, 2010 at 5:32 AM, Kurt Zeilenga <Kurt.Zeilenga at isode.com> wrote:

> User provides hash:
>
> <presence
>    from='hag66 at shakespeare.lit/pda'
>    to='darkcave at chat.shakespeare.lit/thirdwitch'>
>  <x xmlns='http://jabber.org/protocol/muc'>
>    <hash algorithm="sha2">hash</hash>
>  </x>
> </presence>
>
> where hash was the base64 encoded sha2 hash over the concat of subscribers' normalized bare jid, " ", the room's normalized bare jid, " ", and the shared password.


Yes, this is something like what I'm after.  I'm not really looking to
have individual identities authenticate.  Instead, I'm looking for a
more secure way to send the shared credentials for the room.

In the end, the work flow I'd like to have is:

1. The user registers with the room where the owner requires the
registration stanzas to be signed by a "known" user.
2. Once the user is registered, they join the room using a hash of the
shared secret.  Ideally, this would also be a signed stanza.
3. Members of the room can now exchange signed stanzas--which the
recipients may not may not accept.

I'm attempting to use a MUC as a shared trusted exchange.  As such,
I'd like to up the security around the shared secret.

I suppose this should be shared on the muc list (muc at xmpp.org) but I
haven't heard much come across that yet.


-- 
--Alex Milowski
"The excellence of grammar as a guide is proportional to the paucity of the
inflexions, i.e. to the degree of analysis effected by the language
considered."

Bertrand Russell in a footnote of Principles of Mathematics