Network infrastructure obfuscation
US9350751B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Apr 23, 2015 |
| Grant date | May 24, 2016 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Apr 23, 2035 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH04L63/0209
- WIPO fieldDigital communication
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A shadow network, which can be a virtual reproduction of a real, physical, base computer network, is described. Shadow networks duplicate the topology, services, host, and network traffic of the base network using shadow hosts, which are low interaction, minimal-resource-using host emulators. The shadow networks are connected to the base network through virtual switches, etc. in order to form a large obfuscated network. When a hacker probes into a host emulator, a more resource-intensive virtual machine can be swapped in to take its place. When a connection is attempted from a host emulator to a physical computer, the a host emulator can step in to take the place of the physical computer, and software defined networking (SDN) can prevent collisions between the duplicated IP addresses. Replicating the shadow networks within the network introduces problems for hackers and allows a system administrator easier ways to identify intrusions.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.