Wireless Mobile Internet Security, 2nd Edition

Chapter 1

Internetworking and Layered Models

The Internet today is a widespread information infrastructure, but it is inherently an insecure channel for sending messages. When a message (or packet) is sent from one web site to another, the data contained in the message are routed through a number of intermediate sites before reaching their destination. The Internet was designed to accommodate heterogeneous platforms so that people who are using different computers and operating systems can communicate. The history of the Internet is complex and involves many aspects—technological, organizational, and community. The Internet concept has been a big step along the path toward electronic commerce, information acquisition, and community operations.

Early ARPANET researchers accomplished the initial demonstrations of packet- switching technology. In the late 1970s, the growth of the Internet was recognized and subsequently a growth in the size of the interested research community was accompanied by an increased need for a coordination mechanism. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) then formed an International Cooperation Board (ICB) to coordinate activities with some European countries centered on packet satellite research, while the Internet Configuration Control Board (ICCB) assisted DARPA in managing Internet activity. In 1983, DARPA recognized that the continuing growth of the Internet community demanded a restructuring of coordination mechanisms. The ICCB was disbanded ...