Key sharing network device and configuration thereof

Abstract

A method of configuring a network device for key sharing, the method comprising obtaining in electronic form at least two parameter sets, a parameter set comprising a private modulus a public modulus, and a bivariate polynomial having integer coefficients, the binary representation of the public modulus and the binary representation of the private modulus are the same in at least key length consecutive bits, generating local key material for the network device comprising obtaining in electronic form an identity number for the network device, and for each parameter set of the at least two parameter sets obtaining a corresponding univariate polynomial, by determining, using a polynomial manipulation device, a univariate polynomial from the bivariate polynomial of the parameter set by substituting the identity number into said bivariate polynomial, and reducing the result of the substitution modulo the private modulus of the parameter set, and electronically storing at the network device the generated local key material, the generated local key material comprising the public modulus of each parameter set and the corresponding univariate polynomial of each parameter set.