[Fwd: Re: [gnso-ff-pdp-may08] The Definition of Fast Flux]

[Eric Brunner-Williams <ebw@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Here's what I sent Robert and Wendy off-list on the 21st.

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• To: RLVaughn <RL_Vaughn@xxxxxxxxxx>
• Subject: Re: [gnso-ff-pdp-may08] The Definition of Fast Flux
• From: Eric Brunner-Williams <ebw@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
• Date: Mon, 21 Jul 2008 14:22:39 -0400

...
To everyone's great misfortune I am therefore tossing on my dusty
mathematician's hat in order to produce some definitions and
acronyms.  Feel free to ignore them all.

Kwel. I got one too, and of course Mike's got a tractor, which probably wasn't a bad choice when toys were handed out, and Wendy's got a JD.

Definition:
A Compromised Host is a computer which has had software functionality
installed without the express consent of the host's owner.

Could I interest you in plurality of purpose rather than (a) ownership and (b) consent, neither of which work very well in their absence? Recall, the Morris worm was wicked effective at adding capability, and therefore meaningful purpose, to things unlike PCs. Additionally, while bad things can happen to compromised hosts (see the laundry list of harms from Dave and/or Joe) and their owners (shot before dawn without the benefit of clergy or a smoke being one), many, if not all but one, users of PCs are quite happy to not buy "security products" until their use is compromised.

I'm just saying that the lack of consent isn't that reliable a guide. McAfee's market penetration is a lot less than saturation.

We (a different "we", the W3C's P3P Spec WG) spent ages on the several jurisdictions, differing frameworks, and other head-harmful things, for data collection and privacy. We ended up with purpose, and repurpose. That doesn't mean we were right or there aren't alternatives, but you know how far this alley goes ... at least to the first corner and then beyond some.

Definition:
A Compromised Host Service Network (CHSN) is a network whose
infrastructure depends on the use of compromised hosts.

"plural purpose HSN ... one or more plurally purposed hosts."

The above category would include my definition of FF and Rod's
phishing networks.

Definition:
A volatile network is one is purposed to distribute logically
identical services over multiple (perhaps virtual) hosts at request
time.

Time appears to be the issue, but isn't it uniqueness and primitive (non-decomposable, other than port and protocol) of the end point identifier the actual mechanism for virtualization, and the temporal qualities the virtualized endpoints are capable of a secondary effect?

Both the traditional RRDNS and CDN fall into the definition of
volatile networks.  Anycast DNS and CDN's also meet the definition of
volatile networks.

You may want to explain Round Robin.

Definition:
A volatile CHSN (VCHSN) is a volatile network which is also a CHSN.

The fastflux vernacular refers to a VCHSN.

Now consider two networks of intent:
  a) Illegally Purposed Service Networks; and,
  b) Politically Purposed Service Networks.

I'm gratified to see purpose, but I expect difficulties distinguishing "illegal" from "political".

Definition:
An Illegally Purposed Service Network (IPSN) is a network whose
infrastructure is built with the intent of conducting activities
which are considered to be of an illegal nature.

Definition:
A Politically Purposed Service Network (PPSN) is a network whose
infrastructure is built with the intent of conducting activities which
are considered to be of a political nature.

The inclusion of a PPSN in the IPSN category would often be a matter
of debate.

Observations:

An IPSN may not be a CHSN.  As an hypthetical example, pedophile
networks might be entirely built with voluntarily contributed assests.

A PPSN may not be a CHSN.  For example, a network purposed for
political dissent may be built entirely with voluntary assests.

None of the various service networks described above (IPSN, PPSN,
CHSN) are necessarily built using volatile (flux) networks.

This is offlist, just to keep the clutter down.
Eric

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