theupdateframework / theupdateframework/rust-tuf
Zero memory of private keys
Nobody has claimed this yet.
- Dominant language
- Rust
- Stars
- 198
- Forks
- 39
- Avg merge
- 9h 19m
- Merged PRs (30d)
- 2
Description
Since this lib relies on ring for crypto, it may not be possible to zero the memory directly. This should be investigated and possibly updated upstream. Tagging @briansmith since he knows better than I how ring behaves.
At the points where private keys are read, the API could request a &mut [u8] and then zero the bytes after it reads them to ensure they don't float around the caller's program where they could be exploited outside rust-tuf's control. This may be overkill. More research needed.
Contributor guide
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First steps
- Read the whole issue, then the project's contributing guide.
- Comment on the issue to say you are picking it up — it saves two people doing the same work.
- Fork the repository and make your change on a branch.
- Open a pull request that references the issue number.
Research direction
The issue names no files or tests; start by locating the points where private keys are read and investigating how ring handles their memory. Determine whether zeroing through a mutable byte slice is feasible, whether ring needs an upstream change, and what approach would prevent key bytes from remaining in caller memory.
Written by the indexing model from the issue text.
Assessment
- Tech stack
- rust
- Domain
- cryptography, security
- Issue type
- Refactor
- Difficulty
- 5/5
- Estimated time
- Over a week
- Activity status
- Stale
- Clarity
- Needs clarification
- Newbie friendliness
- 25/100