PKI, Logs, And Tree Signatures
The PLANTS Working Group is chartered in the IETF Security Area. Its goal is to reduce the overhead of large post-quantum signatures in Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) systems that use Certificate Transparency (CT).
Post-quantum signature algorithms produce significantly larger signatures than classical algorithms. This becomes costly when integrating Certificate Transparency into PKI operations. PLANTS addresses this by integrating log construction into certificate issuance and developing Merkle Tree-based certificate constructions, allowing a single signature to cover multiple key/identifier bindings.
- Merkle Tree Certificates —
draft-ietf-plants-merkle-tree-certs— Reduces CT logging overhead while maintaining security properties comparable to X.509 and Certificate Transparency.
| Resource | Link |
|---|---|
| WG page | https://datatracker.ietf.org/wg/plants/about/ |
| Mailing list | plants@ietf.org |
| Mailing list archive | https://mailarchive.ietf.org/arch/browse/plants/ |
| Document tracker | https://datatracker.ietf.org/wg/plants/documents/ |
PLANTS is open to all. To participate:
- Subscribe to the mailing list
- Attend IETF meetings (the WG meets at each IETF meeting)
- Review and comment on working group documents
- Contribute via GitHub issues and pull requests in this organization
All contributions to IETF documents are subject to the IETF Note Well.
Each working group document has its own repository in this organization. Issues and pull requests for editorial suggestions and technical discussion are welcome.
By participating in IETF activities, you agree to the terms of the IETF Note Well. Please review it before contributing.
