Subject: Last Call: <draft-ietf-6man-ipv6-atomic-fragments-03.txt> (Processing of IPv6 "atomic" fragments) to Proposed Standard

From: The IESG <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 02 Jan 2013 09:03:08 -0800

The IESG has received a request from the IPv6 Maintenance WG (6man) to
consider the following document:
- 'Processing of IPv6 "atomic" fragments'
  <draft-ietf-6man-ipv6-atomic-fragments-03.txt> as Proposed Standard

The IESG plans to make a decision in the next few weeks, and solicits
final comments on this action. Please send substantive comments to the
[email-masked] mailing lists by 2013-01-16. Exceptionally, comments may be
sent to [email-masked] instead. In either case, please retain the
beginning of the Subject line to allow automated sorting.

Abstract

   The IPv6 specification allows packets to contain a Fragment Header
   without the packet being actually fragmented into multiple pieces (we
   refer to these packets as "atomic fragments").  Such packets
   typically result from hosts that have received an ICMPv6 "Packet Too
   Big" error message that advertises a "Next-Hop MTU" smaller than 1280
   bytes, and are currently processed by some implementations as
   "fragmented traffic".  Thus, by forging ICMPv6 "Packet Too Big" error
   messages an attacker can cause hosts to employ "atomic fragments",
   and then launch any fragmentation-based attacks against such traffic.
   This document discusses the generation of the aforementioned "atomic
   fragments", the corresponding security implications, and formally
   updates RFC 2460 and RFC 5722 such that fragmentation-based attack
   vectors against traffic employing "atomic fragments" are completely
   eliminated.

The file can be obtained via
http://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/draft-ietf-6man-ipv6-atomic-fragments/

IESG discussion can be tracked via
http://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/draft-ietf-6man-ipv6-atomic-fragments/ballot/

No IPR declarations have been submitted directly on this I-D.