IEEE Security Standards

IEEE 802.10 is currently working on a document titled Standard for Interoperable Local Area Network Security (SILS) that has eight parts. Part A is the model, part B is Secure Data Exchange (SDE), Part C is Key Management, Part D is Security Management, Part E is SDE of Ethernet, Part F is Sublayer Management, Part G is SDE Security Labels, and Part H is Protocol Information Conformance Statement (PICS) Proforma.

Two things should be noted:

• 802.10 is seeking to expand the ISO 7498-2 Security Architecture so that additional Security Services (i.e., Authentication, Access Control, and Data Integrity) can be provided at layer two.

• X3S3.3, the ANSI committee for lower layers, and SC6 have not supported this project because it not only departs from the familiar ISO Security Architecture but, also, because it incorporates material subject to copyright protection.

In addition, this committee is working on a key management protocol which, while in several ways is a linear descendant of the SDNS work, draws heavily on the work on GULS and on developments within SC27. It is highly probable that this work will form the basis of the ISO key management standard in SC21/WG6.