1Bytes::Random::Secure(3U)ser Contributed Perl DocumentatiBoyntes::Random::Secure(3)
2
6 Bytes::Random::Secure - Perl extension to generate
7 cryptographically-secure random bytes.
8
10 use Bytes::Random::Secure qw(
11 random_bytes random_bytes_base64 random_bytes_hex
12 );
13 my $bytes = random_bytes(32); # A string of 32 random bytes.
15 my $bytes = random_string_from( 'abcde', 10 ); # 10 random a,b,c,d, and e's.
17 my $bytes_as_base64 = random_bytes_base64(57); # Base64 encoded rand bytes.
19 my $bytes_as_hex = random_bytes_hex(8); # Eight random bytes as hex digits.
21 my $bytes_as_quoted_printable = random_bytes_qp(100); # QP encoded bytes.
23 my $random = Bytes::Random::Secure->new(
26 Bits => 64,
27 NonBlocking => 1,
28 ); # Seed with 64 bits, and use /dev/urandom (or other non-blocking).
29 my $bytes = $random->bytes(32); # A string of 32 random bytes.
31 my $long = $random->irand; # 32-bit random integer.
32
34 Bytes::Random::Secure provides two interfaces for obtaining crypto-
35 quality random bytes. The simple interface is built around plain
36 functions. For greater control over the Random Number Generator's
37 seeding, there is an Object Oriented interface that provides much more
38 flexibility.
39 The "functions" interface provides functions that can be used any time
41 you need a string of a specific number of random bytes. The random
42 bytes are available as simple strings, or as hex-digits, Quoted
43 Printable, or MIME Base64. There are equivalent methods available from
44 the OO interface, plus a few others.
45 This module can be a drop-in replacement for Bytes::Random, with the
47 primary enhancement of using a cryptographic-quality random number
48 generator to create the random data. The "random_bytes" function
49 emulates the user interface of Bytes::Random's function by the same
50 name. But with Bytes::Random::Secure the random number generator comes
51 from Math::Random::ISAAC, and is suitable for cryptographic purposes.
52 The harder problem to solve is how to seed the generator. This module
53 uses Crypt::Random::Seed to generate the initial seeds for
54 Math::Random::ISAAC.
55 In addition to providing "random_bytes()", this module also provides
57 several functions not found in Bytes::Random: "random_string_from",
58 "random_bytes_base64()", "random_bytes_hex", and "random_bytes_qp".
59 And finally, for those who need finer control over how
61 Crypt::Random::Seed generates its seed, there is an object oriented
62 interface with a constructor that facilitates configuring the seeding
63 process, while providing methods that do everything the "functions"
64 interface can do (truth be told, the functions interface is just a thin
65 wrapper around the OO version, with some sane defaults selected). The
66 OO interface also provides an "irand" method, not available through the
67 functions interface.
68
70 There are many uses for cryptographic quality randomness. This module
71 aims to provide a generalized tool that can fit into many applications
72 while providing a minimal dependency chain, and a user interface that
73 is simple. You're free to come up with your own use-cases, but there
74 are several obvious ones:
75 • Creating temporary passphrases ("random_string_from()").
77 • Generating per-account random salt to be hashed along with
79 passphrases (and stored alongside them) to prevent rainbow table
80 attacks.
81 • Generating a secret that can be hashed along with a cookie's
83 session content to prevent cookie forgeries.
84 • Building raw cryptographic-quality pseudo-random data sets for
86 testing or sampling.
87 • Feeding secure key-gen utilities.
89 Why use this module? This module employs several well-designed CPAN
91 tools to first generate a strong random seed, and then to instantiate a
92 high quality random number generator based on the seed. The code in
93 this module really just glues together the building blocks. However,
94 it has taken a good deal of research to come up with what I feel is a
95 strong tool-chain that isn't going to fall back to a weak state on some
96 systems. The interface is designed with simplicity in mind, to
97 minimize the potential for misconfiguration.
98
100 By default "random_bytes" is the only function exported. Optionally
101 "random_string_from", "random_bytes_base64", "random_bytes_hex", and
102 "random_bytes_qp" may be exported.
103
105 The functions interface seeds the ISAAC generator on first use with a
106 256 bit seed that uses Crypt::Random::Seed's default configuration as a
107 strong random seed source.
108 random_bytes
110 my $random_bytes = random_bytes( 512 );
111 Returns a string containing as many random bytes as requested.
113 Obviously the string isn't useful for display, as it can contain any
114 byte value from 0 through 255.
115 The parameter is a byte-count, and must be an integer greater or equal
117 to zero.
118 random_string_from
120 my $random_bytes = random_string_from( $bag, $length );
121 my $random_bytes = random_string_from( 'abc', 50 );
122 $bag is a string of characters from which "random_string_from" may
124 choose in building a random string. We call it a 'bag', because it's
125 permissible to have repeated chars in the bag (if not, we could call it
126 a set). Repeated digits get more weight. For example,
127 "random_string_from( 'aab', 1 )" would have a 66.67% chance of
128 returning an 'a', and a 33.33% chance of returning a 'b'. For
129 unweighted distribution, ensure there are no duplicates in $bag.
130 This isn't a "draw and discard", or a permutation algorithm; each
132 character selected is independent of previous or subsequent selections;
133 duplicate selections are possible by design.
134 Return value is a string of size $length, of characters chosen at
136 random from the 'bag' string.
137 It is perfectly legal to pass a Unicode string as the "bag", and in
139 that case, the yield will include Unicode characters selected from
140 those passed in via the bag string.
141 This function is useful for random string generation such as temporary
143 random passwords.
144 random_bytes_base64
146 my $random_bytes_b64 = random_bytes_base64( $num_bytes );
147 my $random_bytes_b64_formatted = random_bytes_base64( $num_bytes, $eol );
148 Returns a MIME Base64 encoding of a string of $number_of_bytes random
150 bytes. Note, it should be obvious, but is worth mentioning that a
151 base64 encoding of base256 data requires more digits to represent the
152 bytes requested. The actual number of digits required, including
153 padding is "4(n/3)". Furthermore, the Base64 standard is to add
154 padding to the end of any string for which "length % 57" is a non-zero
155 value.
156 If an $eol is specified, the character(s) specified will be used as
158 line delimiters after every 76th character. The default is "qq{\n}".
159 If you wish to eliminate line-break insertions, specify an empty
160 string: "q{}".
161 random_bytes_hex
163 my $random_bytes_as_hex = random_bytes_hex( $num_bytes );
164 Returns a string of hex digits representing the string of
166 $number_of_bytes random bytes.
167 It's worth mentioning that a hex (base16) representation of base256
169 data requires two digits for every byte requested. So "length(
170 random_bytes_hex( 16 ) )" will return 32, as it takes 32 hex digits to
171 represent 16 bytes. Simple stuff, but better to mention it now than
172 forget and set a database field that's too narrow.
173 random_bytes_qp
175 my $random_bytes_qp = random_bytes_qp( $num_bytes );
176 my $random_bytes_qp_formatted = random_bytes_qp( $num_bytes, $eol );
177 Produces a string of $num_bytes random bytes, using MIME Quoted
179 Printable encoding (as produced by MIME::QuotedPrint's "encode_qp"
180 function. The default configuration uses "\n" as a line break after
181 every 76 characters, and the "binmode" setting is used to guarantee a
182 lossless round trip. If no line break is wanted, pass an empty string
183 as $eol.
184
186 The Object Oriented interface provides methods that mirror the
187 "functions" interface. However, the OO interface offers the advantage
188 that the user can control how many bits of entropy are used in seeding,
189 and even how Crypt::Random::Seed is configured.
190 new
192 my $random = Bytes::Random::Secure->new( Bits => 512 );
193 my $bytes = $random->bytes( 32 );
194 The constructor is used to specify how the ISAAC generator is seeded.
196 Future versions may also allow for alternate CSPRNGs to be selected.
197 If no parameters are passed the default configuration specifies 256
198 bits for the seed. The rest of the default configuration accepts the
199 Crypt::Random::Seed defaults, which favor the strongest operating
200 system provided entropy source, which in many cases may be "blocking".
201 CONSTRUCTOR PARAMETERS
203 Bits
205 my $random = Bytes::Random::Secure->new( Bits => 128 );
207 The "Bits" parameter specifies how many bits (rounded up to nearest
209 multiple of 32) will be used in seeding the ISAAC random number
210 generator. The default is 256 bits of entropy. But in some cases it
211 may not be necessary, or even wise to pull so many bits of entropy out
212 of "/dev/random" (a blocking source).
213 Any value between 64 and 8192 will be accepted. If an out-of-range
215 value is specified, or a value that is not a multiple of 32, a warning
216 will be generated and the parameter will be rounded up to the nearest
217 multiple of 32 within the range of 64 through 8192 bits. So if 16384
218 is specified, you will get 8192. If 33 is specified, you will get 64.
219 Note: In the Perlish spirit of "no arbitrary limits", the maximum
221 number of bits this module accepts is 8192, which is the maximum number
222 that ISAAC can utilize. But just because you can specify a seed of
223 8192 bits doesn't mean you ought to, much less need to. And if you do,
224 you probably want to use the "NonBlocking" option, discussed below.
225 8192 bits is a lot to ask from a blocking source such as "/dev/random",
226 and really anything beyond 512 bits in the seed is probably wasteful.
227 PRNG
229 Reserved for future use. Eventually the user will be able to select
231 other RNGs aside from Math::Random::ISAAC.
232 Unique
234 Reserved for future use.
236 Other Crypt::Random::Seed Configuration Parameters
238 For additional seeding control, refer to the POD for
240 Crypt::Random::Seed. By supplying a Crypt::Random::Seed parameter to
241 Bytes::Random::Secure's constructor, it will be passed through to
242 Crypt::Random::Seed. For example:
243 my $random = Bytes::Random::Secure->new( NonBlocking => 1, Bits => 64 );
245 In this example, "Bits" is used internally, while "NonBlocking" is
247 passed through to Crypt::Random::Seed.
248 bytes
250 my $random_bytes = $random->bytes(1024);
251 This works just like the "random_bytes" function.
253 string_from
255 my $random_string = $random->string_from( 'abcdefg', 10 );
256 Just like "random_string_from": Returns a string of random octets
258 selected from the "Bag" string (in this case ten octets from
259 'abcdefg').
260 bytes_hex
262 my $random_hex = $random->bytes_hex(12);
263 Identical in function to "random_bytes_hex".
265 bytes_base64
267 my $random_base64 = $random->bytes_base64( 32, EOL => "\n" );
268 Identical in function to "random_bytes_base64".
270 bytes_qp
272 my $random_qp = $random->bytes_qp( 80 );
273 You guessed it: Identical in function to "random_bytes_qp".
275 irand
277 my $unsigned_long = $random->irand;
278 Returns a random 32-bit unsigned integer. The value will satisfy "0 <=
280 x <= 2**32-1". This functionality is only available through the OO
281 interface.
282 shuffle
284 my $aref_shuffled = $random->shuffle($aref);
285 Shuffles the contents of a reference to an array in sitiu, and returns
287 the same reference.
288 List::Util, which ships with Perl, includes "shuffle" function. But
290 that function is flawed in two ways. First, from a cryptographic
291 standpoint, it uses Perl's "rand", which is not a CSPRNG, and therefore
292 is inadequate.
293 Second, because Perl's rand has an internal state of just 32 bits, it
295 cannot possibly generate all permutations of arrays containing 13 or
296 more elements.
297 This module's "shuffle" uses a CSPRNG, and also benefits from large
299 seeds and a huge internal state. ISAAC can be seeded with up to 8192
300 bits, yielding 2^8192 possible initial states, and 2^8288 possible
301 internal states. A seed of 8192 bits will assure that for arrays of up
302 to 966 elements every permutation is accessible.
303
305 Bytes::Random::Secure's interface tries to keep it simple. There is
306 generally nothing to configure. This design, eliminates much of the
307 potential for diminishing the quality of the random byte stream through
308 misconfiguration. The ISAAC algorithm is used as our factory, seeded
309 with a strong source.
310 There may be times when the default seed characteristics carry too
312 heavy a burden on system resources. The default seed for the functions
313 interface is 256 bits of entropy taken from /dev/random (a blocking
314 source on many systems), or via API calls on Windows. The default seed
315 size for the OO interface is also 256 bits. If /dev/random should
316 become depleted at the time that this module attempts to seed the ISAAC
317 generator, there could be delay while additional system entropy is
318 generated. If this is a problem, it is possible to override the
319 default seeding characteristics using the OO interface instead of the
320 functions interface. However, under most circumstances, this
321 capability may be safely ignored.
322 Beginning with Bytes::Random::Secure version 0.20, Crypt::Random::Seed
324 provides our strong seed (previously it was Crypt::Random::Source).
325 This module gives us excellent "strong source" failsafe behavior, while
326 keeping the non-core dependencies to a bare minimum. Best of all, it
327 performs well across a wide variety of platforms, and is compatible
328 with Perl versions back through 5.6.0.
329 And as mentioned earlier in this document, there may be circumstances
331 where the performance of the operating system's strong random source is
332 prohibitive from using the module's default seeding configuration. Use
333 the OO interface instead, and read the documentation for
334 Crypt::Random::Seed to learn what options are available.
335 Prior to version 0.20, a heavy dependency chain was required for
337 reliably and securely seeding the ISAAC generator. Earlier versions
338 required Crypt::Random::Source, which in turn required Any::Moose.
339 Thanks to Dana Jacobsen's new Crypt::Random::Seed module, this
340 situation has been resolved. So if you're looking for a secure random
341 bytes solution that "just works" portably, and on Perl versions as far
342 back as 5.6.0, you've come to the right place. Users of older versions
343 of this module are encouraged to update to version 0.20 or higher to
344 benefit from the improved user interface and lighter dependency chain.
345 OPTIONAL (RECOMMENDED) DEPENDENCY
347 If performance is a consideration, you may also install
348 Math::Random::ISAAC::XS. Bytes::Random::Secure's random number
349 generator uses Math::Random::ISAAC. That module implements the ISAAC
350 algorithm in pure Perl. However, if you install
351 Math::Random::ISAAC::XS, you get the same algorithm implemented in
352 C/XS, which will provide better performance. If you need to produce
353 your random bytes more quickly, simply installing
354 Math::Random::ISAAC::XS will result in it automatically being used, and
355 a pretty good performance improvement will coincide.
356
358 FORK AND THREAD SAFETY
359 When programming for parallel computation, avoid the "functions"
360 interface do use the Object Oriented interface, and create a unique
361 "Bytes::Random::Secure" object within each process or thread.
362 Bytes::Random::Secure uses a CSPRNG, and sharing the same RNG between
363 threads or processes will share the same seed and the same starting
364 point. This is probably not what one would want to do. By
365 instantiating the B::R::S object after forking or creating threads, a
366 unique randomness stream will be created per thread or process.
367 STRONG RANDOMNESS
369 It's easy to generate weak pseudo-random bytes. It's also easy to
370 think you're generating strong pseudo-random bytes when really you're
371 not. And it's hard to test for pseudo-random cryptographic acceptable
372 quality. There are many high quality random number generators that are
373 suitable for statistical purposes, but not necessarily up to the rigors
374 of cryptographic use.
375 Assuring strong (ie, secure) random bytes in a way that works across a
377 wide variety of platforms is also challenging. A primary goal for this
378 module is to provide cryptographically secure pseudo-random bytes. A
379 secondary goal is to provide a simple user experience (thus reducing
380 the propensity for getting it wrong). A tertiary goal is to minimize
381 the dependencies required to achieve the primary and secondary goals,
382 to the extent that is practical.
383 ISAAC
385 The ISAAC algorithm is considered to be a cryptographically strong
386 pseudo-random number generator. There are 1.0e2466 initial states.
387 The best known attack for discovering initial state would theoretically
388 take a complexity of approximately 4.67e1240, which has no practical
389 impact on ISAAC's security. Cycles are guaranteed to have a minimum
390 length of 2**40, with an average cycle of 2**8295. Because there is no
391 practical attack capable of discovering initial state, and because the
392 average cycle is so long, it's generally unnecessary to re-seed a
393 running application. The results are uniformly distributed, unbiased,
394 and unpredictable unless the seed is known.
395 To confirm the quality of the CSPRNG, this module's test suite
397 implements the FIPS-140-1
398 <http://csrc.nist.gov/publications/fips/fips1401.htm> tests for strong
399 random number generators. See the comments in "t/27-fips140-1.t" for
400 details.
401 DEPENDENCIES
403 To keep the dependencies as light as possible this module uses some
404 ideas from Math::Random::Secure. That module is an excellent resource,
405 but implements a broader range of functionality than is needed here.
406 So we just borrowed from it.
407 The primary source of random data in this module comes from the
409 excellent Math::Random::ISAAC. To be useful and secure, even
410 Math::Random::ISAAC needs a cryptographically sound seed, which we
411 derive from Crypt::Random::Seed. There are no known weaknesses in the
412 ISAAC algorithm. And Crypt::Random::Seed does a very good job of
413 preventing fall-back to weak seed sources.
414 This module requires Perl 5.6 or newer. The module also uses a number
416 of core modules, some of which require newer versions than those
417 contemporary with 5.6. Unicode support in "random_string_from" is best
418 with Perl 5.8.9 or newer. See the INSTALLATION section in this
419 document for details.
420 If Test::Warn is installed, test coverage is 100%. For those who don't
422 want to bother installing Test::Warn, you can just take our word for
423 it. It's an optional installation dependency.
424 BLOCKING ENTROPY SOURCE
426 It is possible (and has been seen in testing) that the system's random
427 entropy source might not have enough entropy in reserve to generate the
428 seed requested by this module without blocking. If you suspect that
429 you're a victim of blocking from reads on "/dev/random", one option is
430 to manipulate the random seed configuration by using the object
431 oriented interface.
432 This module seeds as lazily as possible so that using the module, and
434 even instantiating a Bytes::Random::Secure object will not trigger
435 reads from "/dev/random". Only the first time the object is used to
436 deliver random bytes will the RNG be seeded. Long-running scripts may
437 prefer to force early seeding as close to start-up time as possible,
438 rather than allowing it to happen later in a program's run-time. This
439 can be achieved simply by invoking any of the functions or methods that
440 return a random byte. As soon as a random byte is requested for the
441 first time, the CSPRNG will be seeded.
442 UNICODE SUPPORT
444 The "random_string_from" function, and "string_from" method permit the
445 user to pass a "bag" (or source) string containing Unicode characters.
446 For any modern Perl version, this will work just as you would hope.
447 But some versions of Perl older than 5.8.9 exhibited varying degrees of
448 bugginess in their handling of Unicode. If you're depending on the
449 Unicode features of this module while using Perl versions older than
450 5.8.9 be sure to test thoroughly, and don't be surprised when the
451 outcome isn't as expected. ...this is to be expected. Upgrade.
452 No other functions or methods in this module get anywhere near Perl's
454 Unicode features. So as long as you're not passing Unicode source
455 strings to "random_string_from", you have nothing to worry about, even
456 if you're using Perl 5.6.0.
457 MODULO BIAS
459 Care is taken so that there is no modulo bias in the randomness
460 returned either by "random_bytes" or its siblings, nor by
461 "random_string_from". As a matter if fact, this is exactly why the
462 "random_string_from" function is useful. However, the algorithm to
463 eliminate modulo bias can impact the performance of the
464 "random_string_from" function. Any time the length of the bag string is
465 significantly less than the nearest greater or equal factor of 2**32,
466 performance will degrade. Unfortunately there is no known algorithm
467 that improves upon this situation. Fortunately, for sanely sized
468 strings, it's a minor issue. To put it in perspective, even in the
469 case of passing a "bag" string of length 2**31 (which is huge), the
470 expected time to return random bytes will only double. Given that the
471 entire Unicode range is just over a million possible code-points, it
472 seems unlikely that the normal use case would ever have to be concerned
473 with the performance of the "random_string_from" function.
474
476 This module should install without any fuss on modern versions of Perl.
477 For older Perl versions (particularly 5.6 and early 5.8.x's), it may be
478 necessary to update your CPAN installer to a more modern version before
479 installing this this module.
480 Another alternative for those with old Perl versions who don't want to
482 update their CPAN installer (You must know you're crazy, right?):
483 Review "Makefile.PL" and assure that you've got the dependencies listed
484 under "PREREQ_PM" and "BUILD_REQUIRES", in at least the minimum
485 versions specified. Then proceed as usual.
486 This module only has two non-Core dependencies. But it does expect
488 that some of the Core dependencies are newer than those supplied with
489 5.6 or early 5.8's. If you keep your CPAN installer up-to-date, you
490 shouldn't have to think about this, as it will usually just "do the
491 right thing", pulling in newer dependency versions as directed by the
492 module's META files.
493 Test coverage for Bytes::Random::Secure is 100% (per Devel::Cover) on
495 any system that has Test::Warn installed. But to keep the module
496 light-weight, Test::Warn is not dragged in by default at installation
497 time.
498
500 Math::Random::Secure and Crypt::Random provide strong CSPRINGs and even
501 more configuration options, but come with hefty toolchains.
502 Bytes::Random::Secure::Tiny is a stand-alone adaptation of
504 Bytes::Random::Secure with no dependencies. It will, however, detect if
505 Math::Random::ISAAC, Math::Random::ISAAC::XS, and Crypt::Random::Seed
506 are installed on the target system, and if they are, it quietly
507 upgrades to using them.
508
510 David Oswald "<davido [at] cpan (dot) org>"
511
513 Please report any bugs or feature requests to "bug-bytes-random-secure
514 at rt.cpan.org", or through the web interface at
515 <http://rt.cpan.org/NoAuth/ReportBug.html?Queue=Bytes-Random-Secure>.
516 I will be notified, and then you'll automatically be notified of
517 progress on your bug as I make changes.
518
520 You can find documentation for this module with the perldoc command.
521 perldoc Bytes::Random::Secure
523 You can also look for information at:
525 • Github Repo: <https://github.com/daoswald/Bytes-Random-Secure>
527 • RT: CPAN's request tracker (report bugs here)
529 <http://rt.cpan.org/NoAuth/Bugs.html?Dist=Bytes-Random-Secure>
531 • AnnoCPAN: Annotated CPAN documentation
533 <http://annocpan.org/dist/Bytes-Random-Secure>
535 • CPAN Ratings
537 <http://cpanratings.perl.org/d/Bytes-Random-Secure>
539 • Search CPAN
541 <http://search.cpan.org/dist/Bytes-Random-Secure/>
543
545 Dana Jacobsen ( <dana@acm.org> ) for his work that led to
546 Crypt::Random::Seed, thereby significantly reducing the dependencies
547 while improving the portability and backward compatibility of this
548 module. Also for providing a patch to this module that greatly
549 improved the performance of "random_bytes".
550 Dana Jacosen also provided extensive input, code reviews, and testing
552 that helped to guide the direction this module has taken. The code for
553 the FIPS-140-1 tests was taken directly from Crypt::Random::TESHA2.
554 Thanks!
555 Bytes::Random for implementing a nice, simple interface that this
557 module patterns itself after.
558
560 Copyright 2012 David Oswald.
561 This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it
563 under the terms of either: the GNU General Public License as published
564 by the Free Software Foundation; or the Artistic License.
565 See http://dev.perl.org/licenses/ for more information.
567perl v5.34.0 2022-01-20 Bytes::Random::Secure(3)