Perfect Dark (P2P) - Security

Security

The overall structure of the Perfect Dark network broadly resembles recent versions of Freenet, only with a heavier use of distributed hash tables.

The anonymity relies on a mixnet where traffic is forwarded according to certain probability, as well as the deniability of the distributed data storage ("unity") which is stored and transferred in encrypted blocks while the keys are separately distributed .

Perfect Dark uses RSA (1024-bit) and AES (128-bit) to encrypt data transmitted between peers. Exchanged keys are cached for efficiency.

Published files and boards (including automatic updates from the author, where enabled) are usually signed with 160-bit ECDSA signatures. Automatic updates are additionally protected with a 2048-bit RSA signature.

The author believes that initially, a layer of obscurity due to the closed-source nature of the program will frustrate attempted attacks on its anonymity, as well as deter "free riders" and junk files degrading the network. However, the author has stated that it may become open-source in the future should an acceptable solution to these problems be found.

The Japanese security firm NetAgent is claiming that they have created software capable of deciphering encrypted information such as the IP address of the original computer uploading a file as well as the file name and other details of Perfect Dark.

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