Vulnerability Assessment Team (VAT)
Seals
Definitions
- Lock
- a device that delays unauthorized entry or removal of items. All locks can be defeated quickly by a sufficiently motivated adversary.
- Seal = security seal = tamper-indicating device (TID)
- a tamper-indicating device designed to leave non-erasable, unambiguous evidence of entry or tampering. Unlike locks, seals are not meant to necessarily delay or resist unauthorized access, just record that it took place.
- Barrier seal
- part lock and part seal. Always a compromise, often a source of confusion for the user.
- Tag
- a "fingerprint" or unique identifier of an object (or container) that can be used to recognize the object at a later date, and to avoid confusing it with a similar looking object. May be a unique intrinsic characteristic of the object, or else a marker placed on or in the object.
there are 4 different kinds of tags:
1. inventory
2. anti-counterfeiting
3. security
4. buddy
Lifting is a concern for type 3. (counterfeiting is a concern for types 2-4) - Seal protocols
- the official and unofficial procedures used for seal procurement, storage, accounting, installation, inspection, removal, disposal, reporting, interpreting findings, and training. A seal is no better than the protocols for using it.
- Vulnerability assessment
- discovering and demonstrating ways to defeat a seal or tamper detection program with the hope of improving it. Often includes suggesting counter-measures and security improvements.
- Defeating a seal consists of:
- removing the seal, then resealing using either the original seal or a counterfeit, but without being detected. (Simply yanking a seal off a container is not defeating it since the fact that the seal is damaged or missing will be noted.)
- Attacking a seal
- undertaking a sequence of actions in an attempt to defeat it.
- Terminology not to use because it is misleading and shows a lack of understanding of tamper detection fundamentals:
- · tamper-proof" seal
·tamper-resistant" seal
·seals don't provide security" or "indicative" vs "security seal"
Contact:
Roger Johnston, Section
Manager
National
Security and Non-proliferation Department
Vulnerability Assessments Section
Fax: +1 630-252-7323
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