Increasing the Transparency, Accountability and Controllability of multi-domain networks with the UPIN framework

Demands for a more trustworthy Internet are constantly increasing, in particular to support emerging critical services such as intelligent urban transport systems and smart energy grids. Such cyber-physical systems require more insight into the properties of network operators (e.g., in terms of the security posture of their equipment) and more control over which network operators transport their data, thus going well beyond the traditional security paradigm which the Internet security community currently focuses on (confidentiality, availability, and integrity). In this work-in-progress paper we propose the UPIN framework, which aims to fulfill these new trust requirements. The framework advances the state-of-the-art by defining components needed to incorporate transparency, accountability, and controllability into the Internet or other types of inter-domain networks. The framework is based on our analysis of a smart grid use case to understand the specific needs of critical service providers and a literature study on existing technologies. We also discuss our ongoing work, and the demands and challenges of implementing and deploying the UPIN framework.