Securing multipath TCP: Design & implementation

Abstract

MultiFath TCP (MPTCP) is a recent TCP extension that enables hosts to send data over multiple paths for a single connection. It is already deployed for various use cases, notably on smartphones. In parallel with this, there is a growing deployment of encryption and authentication techniques to counter various forms of security attacks. Tcpcrypt and TLS are some of these security solutions. In this paper, we propose MPTCPsec, a MultiPath TCP extension that closely integrates authentication and encryption inside the protocol itself. Our design relies on an adaptation for the multipath environment of the ENO option that is being discussed within the IETF tcpinc working group. We then detail how MultiPath TCP needs to be modified to authenticate and encrypt all data and authenticate the different TCP options that it uses. Finally, we implement our proposed extension in the reference implementation of MultiPath TCP in the Linux kernel and we evaluate its performance.