Middleboxes and Internet Transparency
- Middleboxes are crucial components in the modern Internet ecosystem.
- They are being deployed in networks for various purposes and perform advanced functions compared to traditional routers.
- RFC 3234 defines middleboxes as:
"Any intermediary device performing functions other than the normal, standard functions of an IP router on the datagram path between a source host and destination host."
- The different types of middleboxes include but not limited to:
- Firewalls
- Network Address Translators (NATs)
- Load balancers
- Proxies
- Intrusion Detection Systems (IDS)
- Intrusion Prevention Systems (IPS)
- WAN optimizers
- Application gateways
- Censorship and surveillance devices
- Despite their significance and widespread use, the impact of middleboxes on Internet transparency has not been thoroughly studied. By Internet transparency we refer providing users the information they need to understand how the Internet operates, including how their data is managed and any monitoring or restrictions in place. It emphasizes openness about the technologies used, their interdependencies, and how data is transmitted, controlled, and modified by entities like ISPs, governments, or middleboxes.
