[ViewVC] Contents of: cvs/Crypt-Spritz/README

NAME
    Crypt::Spritz - Spritz stream cipher/hash/MAC/AEAD/CSPRNG family

SYNOPSIS
     use Crypt::Spritz;

     # see the commented examples in their respective classes,
     # but basically

     my $cipher = new Crypt::Spritz::Cipher::XOR $key, $iv;
     $ciphertext = $cipher->crypt ($cleartext);

     my $cipher = new Crypt::Spritz::Cipher $key, $iv;
     $ciphertext  = $cipher->encrypt ($cleartext);
     # $cleartext = $cipher->decrypt ($ciphertext);

     my $hasher = new Crypt::Spritz::Hash;
     $hasher->add ($data);
     $digest = $hasher->finish;

     my $hasher = new Crypt::Spritz::MAC $key;
     $hasher->add ($data);
     $mac = $hasher->finish;

     my $prng = new Crypt::Spritz::PRNG $entropy;
     $prng->add ($additional_entropy);
     $keydata = $prng->get (32);

     my $aead = new Crypt::Spritz::AEAD::XOR $key;
     $aead->nonce ($counter);
     $aead->associated_data ($header);
     $ciphertext = $aead->crypt ($cleartext);
     $mac = $aead->mac;

     my $aead = new Crypt::Spritz::AEAD $key;
     $aead->nonce ($counter);
     $aead->associated_data ($header);
     $ciphertext  = $aead->encrypt ($cleartext);
     # $cleartext = $aead->decrypt ($ciphertext);
     $mac = $aead->mac;

DESCRIPTION
    This module implements the Spritz spongelike function (with N=256), the
    spiritual successor of RC4 developed by Ron Rivest and Jacob Schuldt.

    Its strength is extreme versatility (you get a stream cipher, a hash, a
    MAC, a DRBG/CSPRNG, an authenticated encryption block/stream cipher and
    more) and extremely simple and small code (encryption and authentication
    can be had in 1KB of compiled code on amd64, which isn't an issue for
    most uses in Perl, but is useful in embedded situations, or e.g. when
    doing crypto using javascript in a browser and communicating with Perl).

    Its weakness is its relatively slow speed (encryption is a few times
    slower than RC4 or AES, hashing many times slower than SHA-3, although
    this might be reversed on an 8-bit-cpu) and the fact that it is totally
    unproven in the field (as of this writing, the cipher was just a few
    months old), so it can't be called production-ready.

    All the usual caveats regarding stream ciphers apply - never repeat your
    key, never repeat your nonce and so on - you should have some basic
    understanding of cryptography before using this cipher in your own
    designs.

    The Spritz base class is not meant for end users. To make usage simpler
    and safer, a number of convenience classes are provided for typical
    end-user tasks:

       random number generation - Crypt::Spritz::PRNG
       hashing                  - Crypt::Spritz::Hash
       message authentication   - Crypt::Spritz::MAC
       encryption               - Crypt::Spritz::Cipher::XOR
       encryption               - Crypt::Spritz::Cipher
       authenticated encryption - Crypt::Spritz::AEAD::XOR
       authenticated encryption - Crypt::Spritz::AEAD

  THE Crypt::Spritz CLASS
    This class implements most of the Spritz primitives. To use it
    effectively you should understand them, for example, by reading the
    Spritz paper <http://people.csail.mit.edu/rivest/pubs/RS14.pdf>,
    especially pp. 5-6.

    The Spritz primitive corresponding to the Perl method is given as
    comment.

    $spritz = new Crypt::Spritz # InitializeState
        Creates and returns a new, initialised Spritz state.

    $spritz->init # InitializeState
        Initialises the Spritz state again, throwing away the previous
        state.

    $another_spritz = $spritz->clone
        Make an exact copy of the spritz state. This method can be called on
        all of the objects in this module, but is documented separately to
        give some cool usage examples.

    $spritz->update # Update
    $spritz->whip ($r) # Whip
    $spritz->crush # Crush
    $spritz->shuffle # Shuffle
    $spritz->output # Output
        Calls the Spritz primitive ovf the same name - these are not
        normally called manually.

    $spritz->absorb ($I) # Absorb
        Absorbs the given data into the state (usually used for key
        material, nonces, IVs messages to be hashed and so on).

    $spritz->absorb_stop # AbsorbStop
        Absorbs a special stop symbol - this is usually used as delimiter
        between multiple strings to be absorbed, to thwart extension
        attacks.

    $spritz->absorb_and_stop ($I)
        This is a convenience function that simply calls "absorb" followed
        by "absorb_stop".

    $octet = $spritz->drip # Drip
        Squeezes out a single byte from the state.

    $octets = $spritz->squeeze ($len) # Squeeze
        Squeezes out the requested number of bytes from the state - this is
        usually

  THE Crypt::Spritz::PRNG CLASS
    This class implements a Pseudorandom Number Generatore (PRNG), sometimes
    also called a Deterministic Random Bit Generator (DRBG). In fact, it is
    even cryptographically secure, making it a CSPRNG.

    Typical usage as a random number generator involves creating a PRNG
    object with a seed of your choice, and then fetching randomness via
    "get":

       # create a PRNG object, use a seed string of your choice
       my $prng = new Crypt::Spritz::PRNG $seed;

       # now call get as many times as you wish to get binary randomness
       my $some_randomness = $prng->get (17);
       my moree_randomness = $prng->get (5000);
       ...

    Typical usage as a cryptographically secure random number generator is
    to feed in some secret entropy (32 octets/256 bits are commonly
    considered enough), for example from "/dev/random" or "/dev/urandom",
    and then generate some key material.

       # create a PRNG object
       my $prng = new Crypt::Spritz::PRNG;

       # seed some entropy (either via ->add or in the constructor)
       $prng->add ($some_secret_highly_entropic_string);

       # now call get as many times as you wish to get
       # hard to guess binary randomness
       my $key1 = $prng->get (32);
       my $key2 = $prng->get (16);
       ...

       # for long running programs, it is advisable to
       # reseed the PRNG from time to time with new entropy
       $prng->add ($some_more_entropy);

    $prng = new Crypt::Spritz::PRNG [$seed]
        Creates a new random number generator object. If $seed is given,
        then the $seed is added to the internal state as if by a call to
        "add".

    $prng->add ($entropy)
        Adds entropy to the internal state, thereby hopefully making it
        harder to guess. Good sources for entropy are irregular hardware
        events, or randomness provided by "/dev/urandom" or "/dev/random".

        The design of the Spritz PRNG should make it strong against attacks
        where the attacker controls all the entropy, so it should be safe to
        add entropy from untrusted sources - more is better than less if you
        need a CSPRNG.

        For use as PRNG, of course, this matters very little.

    $octets = $prng->get ($length)
        Generates and returns $length random octets as a string.

  THE Crypt::Spritz::Hash CLASS
    This implements the Spritz digest/hash algorithm. It works very similar
    to other digest modules on CPAN, such as Digest::SHA3.

    Typical use for hashing:

       # create hasher object
       my $hasher = new Crypt::Spritz::Hash;

       # now feed data to be hashed into $hasher
       # in as few or many calls as required
       $hasher->add ("Some data");
       $hasher->add ("Some more");

       # extract the hash - the object is not usable afterwards
       my $digest = $hasher->finish (32);

    $hasher = new Crypt::Spritz::Hash
        Creates a new hasher object.

    $hasher->add ($data)
        Adds data to be hashed into the hasher state. It doesn't matter
        whether you pass your data in in one go or split it up, the hash
        will be the same.

    $digest = $hasher->finish ($length)
        Calculates a hash digest of the given length and return it. The
        object cannot sensibly be used for further hashing afterwards.

        Typical digest lengths are 16 and 32, corresponding to 128 and 256
        bit digests, respectively.

    $another_hasher = $hasher->clone
        Make an exact copy of the hasher state. This can be useful to
        generate incremental hashes, for example.

        Example: generate a hash for the data already fed into the hasher,
        by keeping the original hasher for further "add" calls and calling
        "finish" on a "clone".

           my $intermediate_hash = $hasher->clone->finish;

        Example: hash 64KiB of data, and generate a hash after every
        kilobyte that is over the full data.

           my $hasher = new Crypt::Spritz::Hash;

           for (0..63) {
              my $kib = "x" x 1024; # whatever data

              $hasher->add ($kib);

              my $intermediate_hash = $hasher->clone->finish;
              ...
           }

        These kind of intermediate hashes are sometimes used in
        communications protocols to protect the integrity of the data
        incrementally, e.g. to detect errors early, while still having a
        complete hash at the end of a transfer.

  THE Crypt::Spritz::MAC CLASS
    This implements the Spritz Message Authentication Code algorithm. It
    works very similar to other digest modules on CPAN, such as
    Digest::SHA3, but implements an authenticated digest (like
    Digest::HMAC).

    *Authenticated* means that, unlike Crypt::Spritz::Hash, where everybody
    can verify and recreate the hash value for some data, with a MAC,
    knowledge of the (hopefully) secret key is required both to create and
    to verify the digest.

    Typical use for hashing is almost the same as with Crypt::Spritz::MAC,
    except a key (typically 16 or 32 octets) is provided to the constructor:

       # create hasher object
       my $hasher = new Crypt::Spritz::Mac $key;

       # now feed data to be hashed into $hasher
       # in as few or many calls as required
       $hasher->add ("Some data");
       $hasher->add ("Some more");

       # extract the mac - the object is not usable afterwards
       my $mac = $hasher->finish (32);

    $hasher = new Crypt::Spritz::MAC $key
        Creates a new hasher object. The $key can be of any length, but 16
        and 32 (128 and 256 bit) are customary.

    $hasher->add ($data)
        Adds data to be hashed into the hasher state. It doesn't matter
        whether you pass your data in in one go or split it up, the hash
        will be the same.

    $mac = $hasher->finish ($length)
        Calculates a message code of the given length and return it. The
        object cannot sensibly be used for further hashing afterwards.

        Typical digest lengths are 16 and 32, corresponding to 128 and 256
        bit digests, respectively.

    $another_hasher = $hasher->clone
        Make an exact copy of the hasher state. This can be useful to
        generate incremental macs, for example.

        See the description for the "Crypt::Spritz::Hash::clone" method for
        some examples.

  THE Crypt::Spritz::Cipher::XOR CLASS
    This class implements stream encryption/decryption. It doesn't implement
    the standard Spritz encryption but the XOR variant (called spritz-xor in
    the paper).

    The XOR variant should be as secure as the standard variant, but doesn't
    have separate encryption and decryaption functions, which saves
    codesize. IT is not compatible with standard Spritz encryption, however
    - drop me a note if you want that implemented as well.

    Typical use for encryption *and* decryption (code is identical for
    decryption, you simply pass the encrypted data to "crypt"):

       # create a cipher - $salt can be a random string you send
       # with your message, in clear, a counter (best), or empty if
       # you only want to encrypt one message with the given key.
       # 16 or 32 octets are typical sizes for the key, for the salt,
       # use whatever you need to give a unique salt for every
       # message you encrypt with the same key.

       my $cipher = Crypt::Spritz::Cipher::XOR $key, $salt;

       # encrypt a message in one or more calls to crypt

       my $encrypted;

       $encrypted .= $cipher->crypt ("This is");
       $encrypted .= $cipher->crypt ("all very");
       $encrypted .= $cipher->crypt ("secret");

       # that's all

    $cipher = new Crypt::Spritz::Cipher::XOR $key[, $iv]
        Creates a new cipher object usable for encryption and decryption.
        The $key must be provided, the initial vector $IV is optional.

        Both $key and $IV can be of any length. Typical lengths for the $key
        are 16 (128 bit) or 32 (256 bit), while the $IV simply needs to be
        long enough to distinguish repeated uses of tghe same key.

    $encrypted = $cipher->crypt ($cleartext)
    $cleartext = $cipher->crypt ($encrypted)
        Encrypt or decrypt a piece of a message. This can be called as many
        times as you want, and the message can be split into as few or many
        pieces as required without affecting the results.

    $cipher->crypt_inplace ($cleartext_or_ciphertext)
        Same as "crypt", except it *modifies the argument in-place*.

    $another_cipher = $cipher->clone
        Make an exact copy of the cipher state. This can be useful to cache
        states for reuse later, for example, to avoid expensive key setups.

        While there might be use cases for this feature, it makes a lot more
        sense for "Crypt::Spritz::AEAD" and "Crypt::Spritz::AEAD::XOR", as
        they allow you to specify the IV/nonce separately.

    $constant_32 = $cipher->keysize
    $constant_64 = $cipher->blocksize
        These methods are provided for Crypt::CBC compatibility and simply
        return 32 and 64, respectively.

        Note that it is pointless to use Spritz with Crypt::CBC, as Spritz
        is not a block cipher and already provides an appropriate mode.

  THE Crypt::Spritz::Cipher CLASS
    This class is pretty much the same as the "Crypt::Spritz::Cipher::XOR"
    class, with two differences: first, it implements the "standard" Spritz
    encryption algorithm, and second, while this variant is easier to
    analyze mathematically, there is little else to recommend it for, as it
    is slower, and requires lots of code duplication code.

    So unless you need to be compatible with another implementation that
    does not offer the XOR variant, stick to "Crypt::Spritz::Cipher::XOR".

    All the methods from "Crypt::Spritz::Cipher::XOR" are available, except
    "crypt", which has been replaced by separate "encrypt" and "decrypt"
    methods:

    $encrypted = $cipher->encrypt ($cleartext)
    $cleartext = $cipher->decrypt ($encrypted)
        Really the same as "Crypt::Spritz::Cipher::XOR", except you need
        separate calls and code for encryption and decryption.

  THE Crypt::Spritz::AEAD::XOR CLASS
    This is the most complicated class - it combines encryption and message
    authentication into a single "authenticated encryption mode". It is
    similar to using both Crypt::Spritz::Cipher::XOR and Crypt::Spritz::MAC,
    but makes it harder to make mistakes in combining them.

    You can additionally provide cleartext data that will not be encrypted
    or decrypted, but that is nevertheless authenticated using the MAC,
    which is why this mode is called *AEAD*, *Authenticated Encryption with
    Associated Data*. Associated data is usually used to any header data
    that is in cleartext, but should nevertheless be authenticated.

    This implementation implements the XOR variant. Just as with
    Crypt::Spritz::Cipher::XOR, this means it is not compatible with the
    standard mode, but uses less code and doesn't distinguish between
    encryption and decryption.

    Typical usage is as follows:

       # create a new aead object
       # you use one object per message
       # key length customarily is 16 or 32
       my $aead = new Crypt::Spritz::AEAD::XOR $key;

       # now you must feed the nonce. if you do not need a nonce,
       # you can provide the empty string, but you have to call it
       # after creating the object, before calling associated_data.
       # the nonce must be different for each usage of the $key.
       # a counter of some kind is good enough.
       # reusing a nonce with the same key completely
       # destroys security!
       $aead->nonce ($counter);

       # then you must feed any associated data you have. if you
       # do not have associated cleartext data, you can provide the empty
       # string, but you have to call it after nonce and before crypt.
       $aead->associated_data ($header);

       # next, you call crypt one or more times with your data
       # to be encrypted (opr decrypted).
       # all except the last call must use a length that is a
       # multiple of 64.
       # the last block can have any length.
       my $encrypted;

       $encrypted .= $aead->crypt ("1" x 64);
       $encrypted .= $aead->crypt ("2" x 64);
       $encrypted .= $aead->crypt ("3456");

       # finally you can calculate the MAC for all of the above
       my $mac = $aead->finish;

    $aead = new Crypt::Spritz::AEAD::XOR $key
        Creates a new cipher object usable for encryption and decryption.

        The $key can be of any length. Typical lengths for the $key are 16
        (128 bit) or 32 (256 bit).

        After creation, you have to call "nonce" next.

    $aead->nonce ($nonce)
        Provide the nonce value (nonce means "value used once"), a value the
        is unique between all uses with the same key. This method *must* be
        called *after* "new" and *before* "associated_data".

        If you only ever use a given key once, you can provide an empty
        nonce - but you still have to call the method.

        Common strategies to provide a nonce are to implement a persistent
        counter or to generate a random string of sufficient length to
        guarantee that it differs each time.

        The problem with counters is that you might get confused and forget
        increments, and thus reuse the same sequence number. The problem
        with random strings i that your random number generator might be
        hosed and generate the same randomness multiple times (randomness
        can be very hard to get especially on embedded devices).

    $aead->associated_data ($data)
        Provide the associated data (cleartext data to be authenticated but
        not encrypted). This method *must* be called *after* "nonce" and
        *before* "crypt".

        If you don't have any associated data, you can provide an empty
        string - but you still have to call the method.

        Associated data is typically header data - data anybody is allowed
        to see in cleartext, but that should nevertheless be protected with
        an authentication code. Typically such data is used to identify
        where to forward a message to, how to find the key to decrypt the
        message or in general how to interpret the encrypted part of a
        message.

    $encrypted = $cipher->crypt ($cleartext)
    $cleartext = $cipher->crypt ($encrypted)
        Encrypt or decrypt a piece of a message. This can be called as many
        times as you want, and the message can be split into as few or many
        pieces as required without affecting the results, with one
        exception: All except the last call to "crypt" needs to pass in a
        multiple of 64 octets. The last call to "crypt" does not have this
        limitation.

    $cipher->crypt_inplace ($cleartext_or_ciphertext)
        Same as "crypt", except it *modifies the argument in-place*.

    $another_cipher = $cipher->clone
        Make an exact copy of the cipher state. This can be useful to cache
        states for reuse later, for example, to avoid expensive key setups.

        Example: set up a cipher state with a key, then clone and use it to
        encrypt messages with different nonces.

           my $cipher = new Crypt::Spritz::AEAD::XOR $key;

           my $message_counter;

           for my $message ("a", "b", "c") {
              my $clone = $cipher->clone;
              $clone->nonce (pack "N", ++$message_counter);
              $clone->associated_data ("");
              my $encrypted = $clone->crypt ($message);
              ...
           }

  THE Crypt::Spritz::AEAD CLASS
    This class is pretty much the same as the "Crypt::Spritz::AEAD::XOR"
    class, with two differences: first, it implements the "standard" Spritz
    encryption algorithm, and second, while this variant is easier to
    analyze mathematically, there is little else to recommend it for, as it
    is slower, and requires lots of code duplication code.

    So unless you need to be compatible with another implementation that
    does not offer the XOR variant, stick to "Crypt::Spritz::AEAD::XOR".

    All the methods from "Crypt::Spritz::AEAD::XOR" are available, except
    "crypt", which has been replaced by separate "encrypt" and "decrypt"
    methods:

    $encrypted = $cipher->encrypt ($cleartext)
    $cleartext = $cipher->decrypt ($encrypted)
        Really the same as "Crypt::Spritz::AEAD::XOR", except you need
        separate calls and code for encryption and decryption, but you have
        the same limitations on usage.

SECURITY CONSIDERATIONS
    At the time of this writing, Spritz has not been through a lot of
    cryptanalysis - it might get broken tomorrow. That's true for any crypto
    algo, but the probability is quite a bit higher with Spritz. Having said
    that, Spritz is almost certainly safer than RC4 at this time.

    Nevertheless, I wouldn't protect something very expensive with it. I
    also would be careful about timing attacks.

    Regarding key lengths - as has been pointed out, traditional symmetric
    key lengths (128 bit, 256 bit) work fine. Longer keys will be overkill,
    but you can expect keys up to about a kilobit to be effective. Longer
    keys are safe to use, they will simply be a waste of time.

PERFORMANCE
    As a cipher/prng, Spritz is reasonably fast (about 100MB/s on 2014 era
    hardware, for comparison, AES will be more like 200MB/s).

    For key setup, ivs, hashing, nonces and so on, Spritz is very slow
    (about 5MB/s on 2014 era hardware, which does SHA-256 at about 200MB/s).

SUPPORT FOR THE PERL MULTICORE SPECIFICATION
    This module supports the perl multicore specification
    (<http://perlmulticore.schmorp.de/>) for all encryption/decryption
    (non-aead > 4000 octets, aead > 400 octets), hashing/absorbing (> 400
    octets) and squeezing/prng (> 4000 octets) functions.

SEE ALSO
    <http://people.csail.mit.edu/rivest/pubs/RS14.pdf>.

SECURITY CONSIDERATIONS
    I also cannot give any guarantees for security, Spritz is a very new
    cryptographic algorithm, and when this module was written, almost
    completely unproven.

AUTHOR
     Marc Lehmann <schmorp@schmorp.de>
     http://software.schmorp.de/pkg/Crypt-Spritz

Revision:	1.4
Committed:	Tue Jun 30 00:46:35 2015 UTC (8 years, 10 months ago) by root
Branch:	MAIN
CVS Tags:	rel-1_0, rel-1_01
Changes since 1.3:	+28 -1 lines
Log Message:	1.0