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Mahipal 2fb6a9faff Rewrite 548 skill descriptions to the activation rubric
Each rewritten description now states both what the skill does (concrete
capability, named tools/artifacts) and an explicit when-to-use trigger,
improving agent discovery/activation. Grounded in each skill's own body;
changes confined to the `description` field only (bodies and all other
frontmatter untouched). Produced by a gated audit->rewrite->recheck loop
(548 -> 0 flagged) with a sampled anti-invention check (0 ungrounded).

Schema: 817/817 pass. Framework-ID gate: 0 defects.
2026-08-02 09:32:13 -07:00

3.4 KiB

name, description, domain, subdomain, tags, version, author, license, nist_csf, mitre_attack
name description domain subdomain tags version author license nist_csf mitre_attack
implementing-zero-knowledge-proof-for-authentication Implements the Schnorr identification protocol and a simplified Zero-Knowledge Password Proof (ZKPP) over the discrete logarithm problem, letting a prover authenticate by demonstrating knowledge of a secret without ever revealing it to the server. Use when designing or building password-less or password-secret-free authentication, or when a server must verify a user's credential without learning or storing the underlying secret. cybersecurity cryptography
cryptography
zero-knowledge-proof
authentication
privacy
zkp
1.0 mahipal Apache-2.0
PR.DS-01
PR.DS-02
PR.DS-10
T1600
T1573
T1553

Implementing Zero-Knowledge Proof for Authentication

Overview

Zero-Knowledge Proofs (ZKPs) allow a prover to demonstrate knowledge of a secret (such as a password or private key) without revealing the secret itself. This skill implements the Schnorr identification protocol and a simplified ZKPP (Zero-Knowledge Password Proof) using the discrete logarithm problem, enabling authentication where the server never learns the user's password.

When to Use

  • When deploying or configuring implementing zero knowledge proof for authentication capabilities in your environment
  • When establishing security controls aligned to compliance requirements
  • When building or improving security architecture for this domain
  • When conducting security assessments that require this implementation

Prerequisites

  • Familiarity with cryptography concepts and tools
  • Access to a test or lab environment for safe execution
  • Python 3.8+ with required dependencies installed
  • Appropriate authorization for any testing activities

Objectives

  • Implement Schnorr's identification protocol for ZKP authentication
  • Build a non-interactive ZKP using Fiat-Shamir heuristic
  • Implement zero-knowledge password proof (ZKPP)
  • Demonstrate completeness, soundness, and zero-knowledge properties
  • Compare ZKP authentication with traditional password verification

Key Concepts

ZKP Properties

Property Description
Completeness Honest prover always convinces honest verifier
Soundness Dishonest prover cannot convince verifier (except negligible probability)
Zero-Knowledge Verifier learns nothing beyond the statement's truth

Schnorr Protocol

  1. Setup: Public generator g, prime p, q (order of g)
  2. Registration: Prover computes y = g^x mod p (public key from secret x)
  3. Commitment: Prover sends t = g^r mod p (random r)
  4. Challenge: Verifier sends random c
  5. Response: Prover sends s = r + c*x mod q
  6. Verify: Check g^s == t * y^c mod p

Security Considerations

  • Use cryptographically secure random number generators
  • Challenge must be unpredictable (from verifier's perspective)
  • For non-interactive proofs, use Fiat-Shamir with collision-resistant hash
  • ZKP alone does not provide forward secrecy; combine with TLS

Validation Criteria

  • Honest prover always verifies successfully (completeness)
  • Random response without secret does not verify (soundness)
  • Server never receives the secret value
  • Non-interactive proof is verifiable offline
  • Multiple authentications produce different transcripts
  • Protocol resists replay attacks