qubes-doc/Multi-factorAuthentication.md

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Using Multi-factor Authentication with Qubes

(Note: This page concerns multi-factor authentication for logging into external severices, not for logging into Qubes itself. For the latter, see here.)

Multi-factor authentication (MFA) is a method of computer access control which a user can pass by successfully presenting several separate authentication stages. Nowadays, this most commonly takes the form of a numerical code generated by a smartphone app or sent via SMS (text message) which the user must enter in addition to a password in order to log in to a website or other service.

One of the primary features of Qubes is that it allows us to create securely isolated VMs which can run arbitrary programs. (These VMs are securely isolated not only from each other but also, optionally, from the network.) This means that we can create a dedicated, network-isolated VM to function as a secure authenticator.

This guide will show you how to set up a VM which uses oathtool, an open- source one-time password tool, to generate authentication codes. This method presents several benefits over relying on a consumer smartphone app or SMS:

• oathtool includes the time-based one-time password (TOTP) algorithm, which is the same algorithm used by Google Authenticator, one of the most commonly used authenticator apps. This means that we can use oathtool as a complete open-source replacement for Google Authenticator (which became propriety (closed-source) in May 2013 after version 2.21).

• By keeping all of our authenticator data as plain text files in a dedicated VM, we have complete control over the secret keys used to generate our authentication tokens, and we can back up, copy, and transfer our authenticator data at will.

• By creating a minimal environment in which to run oathtool from the command line, we can minimize our attack surface relative to most smartphone apps and SMS. Consumer smartphones are typically internet-facing devices which are increasingly targeted by malware. Most smartphones are bundled with proprietary software which allows service providers almost complete control over the device. Likewise, consumer SMS messages are often cleartext communications which can feasibly be intercepted and read by third parties. (In cases in which SMS messages are encrypted on the network by the service provider, the service provider itself of course still has full access, which means that the contents of such messages could be read by unscrupulous admins or turned over to government agencies.)

• Using oathtool in a dedicated, network-isolated Qubes VM allows us to achieve a unqiue combination of security and convenience. The strong isolation Qubes provides allows us to reap the full security benefits of MFA, while virtualization frees us from having to worry about finding and handling a second physical device.

Optional Preparation Steps

1. Start with a minimal template. In this example, we'll use the minimal Fedora template. Download it if you haven't already done so:

   [user@dom0 ~]$ sudo qubes-dom0-update qubes-template-fedora-21-minimal
   

2. Since we'll be making some modifications, you may want to clone the minimal template:

   [user@dom0 ~]$ qvm-clone fedora-21-minimal fedora-21-min-mfa
   

3. Since this is going to be a minimal environment in which we run oathtool from the command line, we need to install only a couple of packages:

   [user@fedora-21-min-mfa ~]$ su -
   [user@fedora-21-min-mfa ~]# yum install oathtool vim-minimal
   

4. Create an AppVM and set it to use fedora-21-min-mfa as its TemplateVM.

5. Ensure that the new AppVM's netvm is set to none.

Using oathtool in an AppVM

Now that we have an AppVM set up to use oathtool securely, let's use it with an external service. This process will vary slightly from service to service but is largely the same.

1. Proceed with setting up multi-factor authentication as you normally would. If you are prompted to scan a QR code with your smartphone, instead select the option (if available) to view the secret key as text:

   

   You should then see something like this:

   

   Note that the length of the secret key may vary:

   

2. In your MFA AppVM, you can now use oathtool to generate base32 TOTP authentication tokens just like Google Authenticator would:

   [user@mfa ~]$ oathtool --base32 --totp "xd2n mx5t ekg6 h6bi u74d 745k n4m7 zy3x"
   279365
   

   In this case, the token you would enter is 279365. (Note that this is a time-based one-time password, which means that your VM's clock must be sufficiently accurate in order to generate a valid token and that the token will change after a short period of time.)

3. To make this easier on ourselves in the future, we can create a simple shell script for each service we use (the example here is Google):

   [user@mfa ~]$ > google
   [user@mfa ~]$ vi google
   
   #!/bin/bash
   ##My Google Account
   ##me@gmail.com
   oathtool --base32 --totp "xd2n mx5t ekg6 h6bi u74d 745k n4m7 zy3x"
   
   [user@mfa ~]$ chmod +x google
   

   Since the secret key stored in our script never changes, we should never have to update this script.

4. Now, whenever a service prompts us for an authenticator code, all we have to do is this:

   [user@mfa ~]$ ./google
   640916
   

   Done!

5. Create similar scripts for other services you use, and enjoy the security and ease of quickly generating TOTP tokens from a Qubes VM command-line:

   [user@mfa ~]$ ./github
   495272
   [user@mfa ~]$ ./aws
   396732
   [user@mfa ~]$ ./facebook
   851956
   [user@mfa ~]$ ./dropbox
   294106
   [user@mfa ~]$ ./microsoft
   295592
   [user@mfa ~]$ ./slack
   501731
   [user@mfa ~]$ ./wordpress
   914625
   [user@mfa ~]$ ./tumblr
   701463
   

   For a more complete list of compatible services, see here.