Access Control Based on Attribute Encryption: NIST IR 8450 Draft is Available for Public Comment

NIST Internal Report (IR) 8450, Overview and Considerations of Access Control Based on Attribute Encryption, is now available for public review and comment.

Access control based on attribute encryption addresses an issue with traditional public-key encryption (PKE) wherein keys need to dynamically change whenever access policies and/or attributes change, which could cause inefficient system performance.

Access control based on attribute encryption supports fine-grained access control for encrypted data and is a cryptographic scheme that goes beyond the all-or-nothing approach of public-key encryption. This document reviews the interplay between cryptography and the access control of attribute-based encryption, including the fundamental theories on which the scheme is based; the various main algorithms of IBE, CP-ABE, and KP-ABE; and considerations for deploying access control systems based on encryption.

The public comment period is open through June 23, 2023. See the publication details for a copy of the draft and instructions for submitting comments.


NOTE: A call for patent claims is included on page ii of this draft. For additional information, see the
Information Technology Laboratory (ITL) Patent Policy Inclusion of Patents in ITL Publications.

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