> > <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> > >Is it possible to design a program that creates a
> file that matches
> > >a specific CHK, so that it would be possible to
> prevent users from
> > >accessing a specific file by injecting the
> colliding file in the
> > >network before the target file becomes too
> popular?
> >
> > Yes, it is possible. But it is computationally
> very hard. For any given
> > CHK there are an infinite number of files that
> yield that CHK after
> > insertion. The problem is finding one of them.
> To quibble, for files of a size of N bits, the
> number of files matching a 
> given SHA1 hash is going to be around (2^N)/(2^160).
> A pretty large number, 
> but a very tiny fraction of N.
> stinfo/devl 

People assume wrongly that because it's HARD to break
the hash the DNS attacks are implosible.  I've even
seen it in papers.  The hash just keeps data from
being overwritten.  

For a DNS attack the adversary just has to build up a
bank of items whose hashes are "close enough" to be
routed to the same machines as the item they are tring
to censor.  Generating such an item takes O(N) time. 
Example: if there are a 1000 nodes and each
specialized in about 0.001 of the hash space, 1/1000
pieces of junk data would wind up on the same node as
the the one with the data.  If you send a bunch of
inserts and requests for these junk items you can
overload nodes of that specialization and possibly
even get the target item dumped from cache.

To fix this avoid a single global hashing function.  A
group of trusted friends could setup an N node clan
and use a secret rehashing function to distribute data
between them (and rebalance load).  An adversary would
now have no way of knowing which node is responsible
for the target item and would be forced to attack N
nodes.

This solution doesn't scale though.  I've been tring
to figuar out how to make a network stand up to these
kinds of censorship attacks, on any network with a
constant fraction of hostile nodes.  It's a very hard problem!!!

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