[mnet-devel] DOS in DHTs (fwd from amichrisde at yahoo.de)

[Morlock Elloi]

Looks like the only way to shield from DOS is to raise the cost of DOS. This
will eventually eliminate the low cost of Internet bandwidth, one way or
another. You don't get nearly the same amount of DOS on your telephone as you
do on Internet, right ? Because telephone call is not free and/or it's
traceable.

The only question is how and where will this cost be introduced. My guess is
that it will happen on the sending side. Even today, assymmetric
cheapo-consumer connectivity makes publishing hard (as in "you are not visible
to the world".) But to handle DOS is harder, as major drive & money on internet
is selling shit, and players want easy (say 800-number) access. Proposals a la
net-driving-license (NDL) indicate the trend.

NDL can happen. Compare it to the early situation with cars or guns. No
regulation in the beginning, you could buy or make your own and do as you
please. Then, when commerce began to depend on both (transport of goods and
force monopolies) they got regulated. I see no difference between that and
computer with an Internet link. NDL is a possible reality. It used to be normal
to drive or carry a weapon without license. These days, they catch you sooner
or later and beat you into pulp. Same thing. Dreaming about it not happening
will get you nowhere.

So what can be done to raise the cost of DOS without introducing NDL ? I have
no answer to this.

What kind of NDL is the least bad ?

- requirement for something that requires human effort when opening a
connection. You do want to let humans into the store, but will refuse entry to
headless drones. OK, wrong analogy. But you get the idea.

- simply raise the cost of outgoing bandwidth - add a cost to every SYN request
or equivalent (have a decent number included in the basic bandwith fee.) This
will make unsuspecting collaborators in DDoS more efficient in keeping their
equipment clean  ("whoever aids .... will be considered enemy combatant.)

The future doesn't seem bright. I think that there is a short window - a year
or two - in which some not-so-bad solution may preempt what They are trying to
do. But I wouldn't hold my breath. It's far more likely that EFF and other
wirehuggers will continue to be outraged (with zero effect as usual) and
clampdown on 'net access will continue.


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