EKMS starts with the Central Facility (CF), run by NSA, which provides a broad range of capabilities to the Services and other government agencies. The CF, also referred to as Tier 0, is the foundation of EKMS. Traditional paper-based keys, and keys for Secure Telephone Unit - Third Generation (STU-III), STE, FNBDT, Iridium, Secure Data Network System (SDNS), and other electronic key are managed from an underground building in Finksburg, Maryland which is capable of the following:
- processing orders for both physical and electronic keys
- electronically generating and distributing keys
- generating key material for FIREFLY (an NSA algorithm based on public key cryptography)
- performing seed conversion and rekey
- maintaining compromise recovery and management of FIREFLY material
- support for over-the-air rekeying (OTAR)
The CF talks to other EKMS elements through a variety of media, communication devices, and networks, either through direct distance dialing using STU-III (data mode) or dedicated link access using KG-84s. During the transition to full electronic key, the 3.5-inch floppy disk and 9-track magnetic tape are also supported. A common user interface, the TCP/IP-based message service, is the primary method of communication with the CF. The message service permits EKMS elements to store EKMS messages that include electronic key for later retrieval by another EKMS element.
Read more about this topic: Electronic Key Management System
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