Vulnerability-Tolerant Transport Layer Security

SSL/TLS communication channels play a very important role in Internet security, including cloud computing and server infrastructures. There are often concerns about the strength of the encryption mechanisms used in TLS channels. Vulnerabilities can lead to some of the cipher suites once thought to be secure to become insecure and no longer recommended for use or in urgent need of a software update. However, the deprecation/update process is very slow and weeks or months can go by before most web servers and clients are protected, and some servers and clients may never be updated. In the meantime, the communications are at risk of being intercepted and tampered by attackers. In this paper we propose an alternative to TLS to mitigate the problem of secure commu- nication channels being susceptible to attacks due to unexpected vulnerabilities in its mechan- isms. Our solution, called Vulnerability-Tolerant Transport Layer Security (vtTLS), is based on diversity and redundancy of cryptographic mechanisms and certificates to ensure a secure communication even when one or more mechanisms are vulnerable. Our solution relies on a combination of k cipher suites which ensure that even if k ? 1 cipher suites are insecure or vul- nerable, the remaining cipher suite keeps the communication channel secure. The performance and cost of vtTLS were evaluated and compared with OpenSSL, one of the most widely used implementations of TLS

CSA Practices for Sustainable Cocoa Farming Systems

Climate change will shape the future production of cocoa and requires mutual cooperation amongst sector stakeholders to tailor responses to its differentiated impacts. Identifying and prioritizing climate smart agriculture (CSA) responses requires integration of multiple objectives and managing trade-offs between food security, adaptation and mitigation. Impact of future climates on growing regions is needed to select locally appropriate CSA practices. Zones of adaptation needs in Indonesia are identified and the ‘why?’ and ‘how?’ of tailored CSA practices are illustrated in an accessible guidebook format

Documenting the application of the Myanmar Climate-Smart Agriculture Strategy

This paper documents the testimonials of those who implemented the Myanmar Climate-Smart Agriculture Strategy (MCSAS) and accounts of those who experienced its application on the ground. Success stories and challenges in implementing MCSAS were documented. Based on the stakeholder interviews conducted, MCSAS is proven to be a valuable document in guiding the implementation of context-specific climate actions in Myanmar. Nineteen government and NGO programs, four policy documents, and an estimate of one billion USD investments were influenced by MCSAS. Following the MCSAS, the National Climate-Smart Agriculture Center of Yezin Agricultural University was established in 2018. Several projects focusing on farmers, particularly the Climate-Smart Village in the Dry Zone and the Farmer Field School in the Delta Zone, were also studied to understand the depth of the influence of MCSAS. In these cases, climate-smart practices adopted have helped farmers coped with climate change and increased their household incomes. Nevertheless, suggestions were made to further improve the Strategy with more specific actions that could be implemented and the funding options that implementers could pursue. The Strategy also needs to be integrated into the current programs of the government and its contents translated in the local language in a format that local people can understand