Public-Key Based Key-Establishment — The NIST SP 800-56 Series

Abstract. The NIST Special Publication (SP) 800-56 series specifies two categories of key-establishment schemes, based on either discrete logarithm or integer factorization. These categories of public-key cryptography were invented almost half a century ago and have become the cornerstone of today’s cybersecurity infrastructure. This talk reviews the development and revision history of the SP 800-56 series, and introduces the schemes specified in the series. The talk also gives background for major decisions, highlighting how cryptographic research influenced the revisions of the series, in coordination and synchronization with other standards organizations, such as IETF. Finally, the talk summarizes what we learned through the development of the SP 800-56 series, which may help us in the development of post-quantum cryptography standards.

Suggested readings: NIST SP 800-56 family (on pair-wise key-establishment): 56A Rev 3 (using Discrete-Log cryptography), 56B Rev 2 (using Integer-factorization cryptography), 56C Rev 2 (on key derivation).