TMS: a trusted mail repository service using public storage clouds

ABSTRACT

In this paper we present the Trusted Mail System (TMS), a dependable Email repository service that explores multiple untrusted storage clouds for storing, accessing and searching private email data. The system architecture provides security and reliability services while leveraging the heterogeneity and diversity offered by different untrusted cloud storage solutions from different service providers. To address dependability issues, TMS enforces a security model that protects confidentiality and integrity of mailboxes stored in those clouds, adding availability, reliability and intrusion-tolerance guarantees. The system uses homomorphic encryption mechanisms and indexing techniques allowing ranked multi-keyword searching operations over encrypted email messages and its contents. We illustrate TMS feasibility from an implemented prototype, evaluating its performance, design options, and services. The experimental results show that the solution is viable, offers reliability and privacy control for the users and does not aggravate conditions of data-access latency and availability.

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Index Terms

• Security and privacy

  • Network security

• Software and its engineering

  • Software organization and properties

    • Extra-functional properties

      • Software fault tolerance

    • Software system structures

      • Distributed systems organizing principles

        • Organizing principles for web applications