NSA Suite B Cryptography in IBM WebSphere MQ
This topic provides information about how to configure IBM® WebSphere® MQ on Windows, Linux®, and UNIX systems to conform to the Suite B compliant TLS 1.2 profile.
Over time, the NSA Cryptography Suite B Standard is updated to reflect new attacks against encryption algorithms and protocols. For example, some CipherSpecs might cease to be Suite B certified. When such changes occur, IBM WebSphere MQ is also updated to implement the latest standard. As a result, you might see changes in behavior after applying maintenance. The IBM WebSphere MQ Version 7.5 readme file lists the version of Suite B enforced by each product maintenance level. If you configure IBM WebSphere MQ to enforce Suite B compliance, always consult the readme file when planning to apply maintenance (see IBM MQ, WebSphere MQ, and MQSeries product READMEs).
Security level | Allowed CipherSpecs | Allowed digital signature algorithms |
---|---|---|
128-bit |
ECDHE_ECDSA_AES_128_GCM_SHA256
ECDHE_ECDSA_AES_256_GCM_SHA384 |
ECDSA with SHA-256
ECDSA with SHA-384 |
192-bit | ECDHE_ECDSA_AES_256_GCM_SHA384 | ECDSA with SHA-384 |
Both 1 |
ECDHE_ECDSA_AES_128_GCM_SHA256
ECDHE_ECDSA_AES_256_GCM_SHA384 |
ECDSA with SHA-256
ECDSA with SHA-384 |
- It is possible to configure both the 128-bit and 192-bit security levels concurrently. Since the Suite B configuration determines the minimum acceptable cryptographic algorithms, configuring both security levels is equivalent to configuring only the 128-bit security level. The cryptographic algorithms of the 192-bit security level are stronger than the minimum required for the 128-bit security level, so they are permitted for the 128-bit security level even if the 192-bit security level is not enabled.
CipherSpec conformation to Suite B
Although
the default behavior of IBM WebSphere MQ is
not to comply with the Suite B standard, IBM WebSphere MQ can be configured to conform to
either, or both security levels on Windows,
UNIX and Linux systems. Following the successful configuration
of IBM WebSphere MQ to use Suite B, any attempt
to start an outbound channel using a CipherSpec not conforming to
Suite B results in the error AMQ9282
. This activity
also results in the MQI client returning the reason code MQRC_CIPHER_SPEC_NOT_SUITE_B
.
Similarly, attempting to start an inbound channel using a CipherSpec
not conforming to the Suite B configuration results in the error AMQ9616
.
For more information about WebSphere MQ CipherSpecs, see Specifying CipherSpecs
Suite B and digital certificates
Suite
B restricts the digital signature algorithms which can be used to
sign digital certificates. Suite B also restricts the type of public
key which certificates can contain. Therefore
WebSphere MQ must be configured to use
certificates whose digital signature algorithm and public key type
are allowed by the configured Suite B security level of the remote
partner. Digital certificates which do not comply with the security
level requirements are rejected and the connection fails with error AMQ9633
or AMQ9285
.
For the 128-bit Suite B security level, the public key of the certificate subject is required to use either the NIST P-256 elliptic curve or the NIST P-384 elliptic curve and to be signed with either the NIST P-256 elliptic curve or the NIST P-384 elliptic curve. At the 192-bit Suite B security level, the public key of the certificate subject is required to use the NIST P-384 elliptic curve and to be signed with the NIST P-384 elliptic curve.
To obtain a certificate
suitable for Suite B compliant operation, use the runmqakm command
and specify the -sig_alg parameter to request
a suitable digital signature algorithm. The EC_ecdsa_with_SHA256
and EC_ecdsa_with_SHA384
-sig_alg parameter
values correspond to elliptic curve keys signed by the allowed Suite
B digital signature algorithms.
Creating and requesting digital certificates
To create a self-signed digital certificate for Suite B testing, see Creating a self-signed personal certificate on UNIX, Linux, and Windows systems
FIPS 140-2 and Suite B
The Suite B standard is conceptually similar to FIPS 140-2, as it restricts the set of enabled cryptographic algorithms in order to provide an assured level of security. The Suite B CipherSpecs currently supported can be used when IBM WebSphere MQ is configured for FIPS 140-2 compliant operation. It is therefore possible to configure WebSphere MQ for both FIPS and Suite B compliance simultaneously, in which case both sets of restrictions apply.
The following diagram illustrates the relationship between these subsets:
Configuring WebSphere MQ for Suite B compliant operation
For information about how to configure IBM WebSphere MQ on Windows, UNIX and Linux for Suite B compliant operation, see Configuring IBM WebSphere MQ for Suite B.
IBM WebSphere MQ does not support Suite B compliant operation on the IBM i and z/OS platforms. The WebSphere MQ Java and JMS clients also do not support Suite B compliant operation.