On Combinatorial Security Testing for the Tor Anonymity Network Client

Published

September 17, 2024

Author(s)

Dimitris Simos, Bernhard Garn, Dominik-Philip Schreiber, Manuel Leithner, David Kuhn, Raghu Kacker

Abstract

In this paper, we present an application of combinatorial security testing to the well-known anonymity network Tor. Rigorous testing of the Tor network is important to evaluate not only its functionality, but also the security it provides to its users. However, such testing efforts are facing challenges including accurate modelling as well as creation of automated and security focused test oracles. We argue that combinatorial test sets fulfilling coverage criteria can be used to enhance and augment currently employed testing approaches of Tor in practice. Results from a case study demonstrate that combinatorial methods are a promising avenue for security testing of the Tor anonymity network client.

Proceedings Title

2024 IEEE International Conference on Software Testing, Verification and Validation Workshops (ICSTW)

Conference Dates

May 27-31, 2024

Conference Location

Toronto, CA

Conference Title

International Workshop on Combinatorial Testing (IWCT) 2024

Pub Type

Conferences

Download Paper

https://doi.org/10.1109/ICSTW60967.2024.00047

Local Download

Keywords

combinatorial testing, combinatorial security testing, anonymity network, Tor

Citation

Simos, D. , Garn, B. , Schreiber, D. , Leithner, M. , Kuhn, D. and Kacker, R. (2024), On Combinatorial Security Testing for the Tor Anonymity Network Client, 2024 IEEE International Conference on Software Testing, Verification and Validation Workshops (ICSTW), Toronto, CA, [online], https://doi.org/10.1109/ICSTW60967.2024.00047, https://tsapps.nist.gov/publication/get_pdf.cfm?pub_id=956895 (Accessed January 2, 2025)