An introduction to the mathematics of trust in security protocols

One of the most important functions performed by security protocols is to transfer trust from where it exists to where it is needed. As a result , all protocols enforce a set of restrictions as to who may exercise them-either spelled out explicitly or left implicit in the protocol specification. In addition, there may be unanticipated-even unacceptable-groupings of participants who can also exercise the protocol as a result of trusts existing among some of them. Formal methods are developed to analyze trust as a fundamental dimension in security protocol analysis and proof.<
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