September 2013 Summaries

On September 27, 2013, Matthew Prince celebrated the third anniversary of CloudFlare's public launch. The company has grown significantly since its inception on September 27, 2010, now powering over 1.5 million websites and handling more than 4% of all web requests. Initially concerned about their limited server capacity, they implemented a signup invite system that was never utilized due to an oversight. On launch day, the company signed up nearly 2,000 new sites, far exceeding their expectations. Today, CloudFlare signs up as many as 5,000 new customers daily and continues to expand its network capabilities.

The text discusses the use of encryption schemes in SSL/TLS connections, specifically focusing on symmetric and asymmetric cryptography. It explains that a 128-bit symmetric key is more secure than a 2048-bit asymmetric key due to differences in their encryption methods. Symmetric keys are used for both enciphering and deciphering data, while asymmetric keys consist of two different keys - one for encryption and another for decryption. The text also highlights the importance of randomness in choosing cryptographic keys and provides recommendations on key lengths based on ECRYPT II reports. Additionally, it mentions that CloudFlare has implemented forward secrecy to enhance security by generating fresh public/private key pairs for each connection.

The article discusses the importance of good random number generation in secure computer systems and how weaknesses in this process can lead to vulnerabilities. It highlights a hack on Hacker News, where an attacker exploited a weak seed used by the site's pseudo-random number generator to impersonate users. Random numbers are crucial for various cryptographic schemes such as SSL connections, WPA2 protocol, and secure email. The author mentions that CloudFlare is working on improving its random number generation system by incorporating truly random data from sources like radioactive decay or atmospheric noise.

CloudFlare is participating in the Interactive portion of SXSW in Austin from March 7-11, 2014. They have submitted five panel topics for consideration, including discussions on NSA and online surveillance, streaming entertainment networks, recruiting and building a team, partnership strategies, and building a SaaS sales team. Public voting for the PanelPicker ends on September 6 at 11:59 PM CT, with votes counting for 30% of a session's acceptance to SXSW.