PRECIS P. Saint-Andre
Internet-Draft Cisco Systems, Inc.
Obsoletes: 4013 (if approved) A. Melnikov
Intended status: Standards Track Isode Ltd
Expires: February 05, 2014 August 04, 2013

Preparation and Comparison of Internationalized Strings Representing Usernames and Passwords
draft-ietf-precis-saslprepbis-04

Abstract

This document describes how to handle Unicode strings representing usernames and passwords. This profile is intended to be used by protocols that exchange or otherwise make use of usernames and passwords. This document obsoletes RFC 4013.

Status of This Memo

This Internet-Draft is submitted in full conformance with the provisions of BCP 78 and BCP 79.

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This Internet-Draft will expire on February 05, 2014.

Copyright Notice

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Table of Contents

1. Introduction

Usernames and passwords are widely used for authentication and authorization on the Internet, either directly when provided in plaintext (as in the SASL PLAIN mechanism [RFC4616] or the HTTP Basic scheme [RFC2617]) or indirectly when provided as the input to a cryptographic algorithm such as a hash function (as in the SASL SCRAM mechanism [RFC5802] or the HTTP Digest scheme [RFC2617]). To increase the likelihood that the input and comparison of usernames and passwords will work in ways that make sense for typical users throughout the world, this document defines rules for preparing and comparing internationalized strings that represent usernames and passwords.

The methods specified in this document define a PRECIS profile as explained in the PRECIS framework specification [I-D.ietf-precis-framework]. This document assumes that all strings are comprised of characters from the Unicode character set [UNICODE], with special attention to characters outside the ASCII range [RFC20]. The methods defined here might be applicable wherever usernames or passwords are used. However, the methods are not intended for use in preparing strings that are not usernames (e.g., email addresses and LDAP distinguished names), nor in cases where identifiers or secrets are not strings (e.g., keys and certificates) or require specialized handling.

This document obsoletes RFC 4013 (the "SASLprep" profile of stringprep [RFC3454]) but can be used by technologies other than the Simple Authentication and Security Layer (SASL) [RFC4422], such as HTTP authentication [RFC2617].

2. What the Username and Password Profiles Provide

Profiles of the PRECIS framework enable software to handle Unicode characters outside the ASCII range in an automated way, so that such characters are treated carefully and consistently in application protocols. In large measure, these profiles are designed to protect application developers from the potentially negative consequences of supporting the full range of Unicode characters. For instance, in almost all application protocols it would be dangerous to treat the Unicode character SUPERSCRIPT ONE (U+0089) as equivalent to DIGIT ONE (U+0031), since that would result in false positives during comparison, authentication, and authorization (e.g., an attacker could easy spoof an account "user1@example.com").

Whereas a naive use of Unicode would make such attacks trivially easy, the Username PRECIS profile defined in this document generally protects applications from inadvertently causing such problems. (Similar considerations apply to passwords, although here it is desirable to support a wider range of characters so as to maximize entropy during authentication.)

3. Terminology

Many important terms used in this document are defined in [I-D.ietf-precis-framework], [RFC5890], [RFC6365], and [UNICODE]. The term "non-ASCII space" refers to any Unicode code point having a general category of "Zs", with the exception of U+0020 (here called "ASCII space").

As used here, the term "password" is not literally limited to a word; i.e., a password could be a passphrase consisting of more than one word, perhaps separated by spaces or other such characters.

Some SASL mechanisms (e.g., CRAM-MD5, DIGEST-MD5, and SCRAM) specify that the authentication identity used in the context of such mechanisms is a "simple user name" (see Section 2 of [RFC4422] as well as [RFC4013]). Various application technologies also assume that the identity of a user or account takes the form of a username (e.g., authentication for the HyperText Transfer Protocol [RFC2617]), whether or not they use SASL. Note well that the exact form of a username in any particular SASL mechanism or application technology is a matter for implementation and deployment, and that a username does not necessarily map to any particular application identifier (such as the localpart of an email address).

The key words "MUST", "MUST NOT", "REQUIRED", "SHALL", "SHALL NOT", "SHOULD", "SHOULD NOT", "RECOMMENDED", "NOT RECOMMENDED", "MAY", and "OPTIONAL" in this document are to be interpreted as described in [RFC2119].

4. Usernames

4.1. Definition

This document specifies that a username is a string of Unicode code points [UNICODE], encoded using UTF-8 [RFC3629], and structured either as an ordered sequence of "userparts" (where the complete username can consist of a single userpart or a space-separated sequence of userparts) or as a userpart@domainpart (where the domainpart is an IP literal, an IPv4 address, or a fully-qualified domain name).

The syntax for a username is defined as follows using the Augmented Backus-Naur Form (ABNF) [RFC5234].

   username   = userpart [1*(1*SP userpart)]
                / userpart '@' domainpart
   userpart   = 1*(idpoint)
                ;
                ; an "idpoint" is a UTF-8 encoded Unicode code point 
                ; that conforms to the PRECIS "IdentifierClass"
                ;
   domainpart = IP-literal / IPv4address / ifqdn
                ;
                ; the "IPv4address" and "IP-literal" rules are 
                ; defined in RFC 3986, and the first-match-wins 
                ; (a.k.a. "greedy") algorithm described in RFC 3986 
                ; applies
                ;
                ; reuse of the IP-literal rule from RFC 3986 implies 
                ; that IPv6 addresses are enclosed in square brackets 
                ; (i.e., beginning with '[' and ending with ']')
                ;
   ifqdn      = 1*1023(domainpoint)
                ;
                ; a "domainpoint" is a UTF-8 encoded Unicode code 
                ; point that conforms to RFC 5890
                ;
        

All code points and blocks not explicitly allowed in the PRECIS IdentifierClass are disallowed; this includes private use characters, surrogate code points, and the other code points and blocks that were defined as "Prohibited Output" in [RFC4013]. In addition, common constructions such as "user@example.com" are allowed as usernames under this specification, as they were under [RFC4013].

4.2. Preparation

A username MUST NOT be zero bytes in length. This rule is to be enforced after any normalization and mapping of code points.

Each userpart of a username MUST conform to the definition of the PRECIS IdentifierClass provided in [I-D.ietf-precis-framework], where the width mapping, additional mapping, case mapping, normalization, and directionality rules are as follows.

  1. Fullwidth and halfwidth characters MUST be mapped to their decomposition equivalents.
  2. So-called additional mappings MAY be applied, such as those defined in [I-D.ietf-precis-mappings].
  3. Uppercase and titlecase characters SHOULD be mapped to their lowercase equivalents (not doing so can lead to false positives during authentication and authorization, as described in [RFC6943]).
  4. Unicode Normalization Form C (NFC) MUST be applied to all characters.

With regard to directionality, the "Bidi Rule" provided in [RFC5893] applies.

SASL mechanisms that directly re-use this profile MUST specify whether and when case mapping is to be applied to authentication identifiers. SASL mechanisms SHOULD delay any case mapping to the last possible moment, such as when doing a lookup by username, username comparisons, or generating a cryptographic salt from a username. In keeping with RFC4422, SASL mechanisms are not to apply this or any other profile to authorization identifiers.

Application protocols that use SASL (such as IMAP [RFC4616] and XMPP [RFC6120]) and that directly re-use this profile MUST specify whether case mapping is to be applied to authorization identifiers. Such "SASL application protocols" SHOULD delay any case mapping of authorization identifiers to the last possible moment, which happens to necessarily be on the server side. In keeping with RFC4422, SASL application protocols are not to apply this or any other profile to authentication identifiers.

Application protoocls that do not use SASL (such as HTTP authentication with the Basic and Digest schemes [RFC2617]) MUST specify whether and when case mapping is to be applied to authentication identifiers and authorization identifiers. Such application protocols SHOULD delay any case mapping to the last possible moment, such as when doing a lookup by username, username comparisons, or generating a cryptographic salt from a username.

In protocols that provide usernames as input to a cryptographic algorithm such as a hash function, the client will need to perform proper preparation of the username before applying the algorithm, since the username is not available to the server in plaintext form.

5. Passwords

5.1. Definition

This document specifies that a password is a string of Unicode code points [UNICODE], encoded using UTF-8 [RFC3629], and conformant to the PRECIS FreeformClass.

The syntax for a password is defined as follows using the Augmented Backus-Naur Form (ABNF) [RFC5234].

   password       = 1*(freepoint)
                    ;
                    ; a "freepoint" is a UTF-8 encoded
                    ; Unicode code point that conforms to
                    ; the PRECIS "FreeformClass" 
                    ;
        

All code points and blocks not explicitly allowed in the PRECIS FreeformClass are disallowed; this includes private use characters, surrogate code points, and the other code points and blocks defined as "Prohibited Output" in Section 2.3 of RFC 4013.

5.2. Preparation

A password MUST NOT be zero bytes in length. This rule is to be enforced after any normalization and mapping of code points.

A password MUST conform to the definition of the PRECIS FreeformClass provided in [I-D.ietf-precis-framework], where the width mapping, additional mapping, case mapping, normalization, and directionality rules are as described below.

  1. Fullwidth and halfwidth characters MUST NOT be mapped to their decomposition equivalents.
  2. Any instances of non-ASCII space MUST be mapped to ASCII space (U+0020).
  3. So-called additional mappings MAY be applied, such as those defined in [I-D.ietf-precis-mappings].
  4. Uppercase and titlecase characters MUST NOT be mapped to their lowercase equivalents.
  5. Unicode Normalization Form C (NFC) MUST be applied to all characters.

With regard to directionality, the "Bidi Rule" (defined in [RFC5893]) and similar rules are unnecessary and inapplicable to passwords, since they can reduce the range of characters that are allowed in a string and therefore reduce the amount of entropy that is possible in a password. Furthermore, such rules are intended to minimize the possibility that the same string will be displayed differently on a system set for right-to-left display and a system set for left-to-right display; however, passwords are typically not displayed at all and are rarely meant to be interoperable across different systems in the way that non-secret strings like domain names and usernames are.

In protocols that provide passwords as input to a cryptographic algorithm such as a hash function, the client will need to perform proper preparation of the password before applying the algorithm, since the password is not available to the server in plaintext form.

6. Migration

The rules defined in this specification differ slightly from those defined by the SASLprep specification [RFC4013]. The following sections describe these differences, along with their implications for migration, in more detail.

6.1. Usernames

Deployments that currently use SASLprep for handling usernames might need to scrub existing data when migrating to use of the rules defined in this specification. In particular:

6.2. Passwords

Depending on local service policy, migration from RFC 4013 to this specification might not involve any scrubbing of data (since passwords might not be stored in the clear anyway); however, service providers need to be aware of possible issues that might arise during migration. In particular:

7. Security Considerations

7.1. Password/Passphrase Strength

The ability to include a wide range of characters in passwords and passphrases can increase the potential for creating a strong password with high entropy. However, in practice, the ability to include such characters ought to be weighed against the possible need to reproduce them on various devices using various input methods.

7.2. Identifier Comparison

The process of comparing identifiers (such as SASL simple user names, authentication identifiers, and authorization identifiers) can lead to either false negatives or false positives, both of which have security implications. A more detailed discussion can be found in [RFC6943].

7.3. Reuse of PRECIS

The security considerations described in [I-D.ietf-precis-framework] apply to the "IdentifierClass" and "FreeformClass" base string classes used in this document for usernames and passwords, respectively.

7.4. Reuse of Unicode

The security considerations described in [UTR39] apply to the use of Unicode characters in usernames and passwords.

8. IANA Considerations

[Note to RFC Editor: please change XXXX to the number issued for this specification.]

8.1. Use of IdentifierClass

The IANA shall add an entry to the PRECIS Usage Registry for reuse of the PRECIS IdentifierClass, as follows:

Applicability:
Usernames in security and application protocols.
Base Class:
IdentifierClass.
Subclass:
No.
Replaces:
The SASLprep profile of Stringprep.
Width Mapping:
Map fullwidth and halfwidth characters to their decomposition equivalents.
Additional Mappings:
None.
Case Mapping:
Not recommended, but to be defined by application protocols that use this profile.
Normalization:
NFC.
Directionality:
The "Bidi Rule" defined in RFC 5893 applies.
Specification:
RFC XXXX.

8.2. Use of FreeformClass

The IANA shall add an entry to the PRECIS Usage Registry for reuse of the PRECIS FreeformClass, as follows:

Applicability:
Passwords in security and application protocols.
Base Class:
FreeformClass
Subclass:
No.
Replaces:
The SASLprep profile of Stringprep.
Width Mapping:
None.
Additional Mappings:
Map non-ASCII space characters to ASCII space.
Case Mapping:
None.
Normalization:
NFC.
Directionality:
None.
Specification:
RFC XXXX.

9. References

9.1. Normative References

[I-D.ietf-precis-framework] Saint-Andre, P. and M. Blanchet, "Precis Framework: Handling Internationalized Strings in Protocols", Internet-Draft draft-ietf-precis-framework-09, July 2013.
[RFC2119] Bradner, S., "Key words for use in RFCs to Indicate Requirement Levels", BCP 14, RFC 2119, March 1997.
[RFC3629] Yergeau, F., "UTF-8, a transformation format of ISO 10646", STD 63, RFC 3629, November 2003.
[RFC5234] Crocker, D. and P. Overell, "Augmented BNF for Syntax Specifications: ABNF", STD 68, RFC 5234, January 2008.
[UNICODE] The Unicode Consortium, "The Unicode Standard, Version 6.1", 2012.

9.2. Informative References

[I-D.ietf-precis-mappings] YONEYA, Y. and T. NEMOTO, "Mapping characters for PRECIS classes", Internet-Draft draft-ietf-precis-mappings-02, May 2013.
[RFC20] Cerf, V., "ASCII format for network interchange", RFC 20, October 1969.
[RFC2617] Franks, J., Hallam-Baker, P.M., Hostetler, J.L., Lawrence, S.D., Leach, P.J., Luotonen, A. and L. Stewart, "HTTP Authentication: Basic and Digest Access Authentication", RFC 2617, June 1999.
[RFC3454] Hoffman, P. and M. Blanchet, "Preparation of Internationalized Strings ("stringprep")", RFC 3454, December 2002.
[RFC4013] Zeilenga, K., "SASLprep: Stringprep Profile for User Names and Passwords", RFC 4013, February 2005.
[RFC4422] Melnikov, A. and K. Zeilenga, "Simple Authentication and Security Layer (SASL)", RFC 4422, June 2006.
[RFC4616] Zeilenga, K., "The PLAIN Simple Authentication and Security Layer (SASL) Mechanism", RFC 4616, August 2006.
[RFC5802] Newman, C., Menon-Sen, A., Melnikov, A. and N. Williams, "Salted Challenge Response Authentication Mechanism (SCRAM) SASL and GSS-API Mechanisms", RFC 5802, July 2010.
[RFC5890] Klensin, J., "Internationalized Domain Names for Applications (IDNA): Definitions and Document Framework", RFC 5890, August 2010.
[RFC5891] Klensin, J., "Internationalized Domain Names in Applications (IDNA): Protocol", RFC 5891, August 2010.
[RFC5893] Alvestrand, H. and C. Karp, "Right-to-Left Scripts for Internationalized Domain Names for Applications (IDNA)", RFC 5893, August 2010.
[RFC5894] Klensin, J., "Internationalized Domain Names for Applications (IDNA): Background, Explanation, and Rationale", RFC 5894, August 2010.
[RFC6120] Saint-Andre, P., "Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol (XMPP): Core", RFC 6120, March 2011.
[RFC6365] Hoffman, P. and J. Klensin, "Terminology Used in Internationalization in the IETF", BCP 166, RFC 6365, September 2011.
[RFC6943] Thaler, D., "Issues in Identifier Comparison for Security Purposes", RFC 6943, May 2013.
[UTR39] The Unicode Consortium, "Unicode Technical Report #39: Unicode Security Mechanisms", August 2010.

Appendix A. Differences from RFC 4013

This document builds upon the PRECIS framework defined in [I-D.ietf-precis-framework], which differs fundamentally from the stringprep technology [RFC3454] used in SASLprep [RFC4013]. The primary difference is that stringprep profiles allowed all characters except those which were explicitly disallowed, whereas PRECIS profiles disallow all characters except those which are explicitly allowed (this "inclusion model" was originally used for internationalized domain names in [RFC5891]; see [RFC5894] for further discussion). It is important to keep this distinction in mind when comparing the technology defined in this document to SASLprep [RFC4013].

The following substantive modifications were made from RFC 4013.

Appendix B. Acknowledgements

The following individuals provided helpful feedback on this document: Marc Blanchet, Alan DeKok, Joe Hildebrand, Jeffrey Hutzelman, Simon Josefsson, Jonathan Lennox, Matt Miller, Chris Newman, Yutaka OIWA, Pete Resnick, Andrew Sullivan, and Nico Williams (Nico in particular provided text that was used in Section 2.2). Thanks also to Yoshiro YONEYA and Takahiro NEMOTO for implementation feedback.

This document borrows some text from [RFC4013] and [RFC6120].

Authors' Addresses

Peter Saint-Andre Cisco Systems, Inc. 1899 Wynkoop Street, Suite 600 Denver, CO 80202 USA Phone: +1-303-308-3282 EMail: psaintan@cisco.com
Alexey Melnikov Isode Ltd 5 Castle Business Village 36 Station Road Hampton, Middlesex TW12 2BX UK EMail: Alexey.Melnikov@isode.com