Mobil..: ad hoc networks oner communication over a shared wireless channel without any pre-existing inli'astructure, Threshold digital signatures are an important cryptographic tool used in most existing key management schemes lor mobile ad hoc networks, This paper proposes a I!I/'e.l'!lold-1Il11lli.l'igllalll/'c scheme designed speeilically lor mobile ad hoc networks, The signature scheme allows a subset or shareholders with threshold I. to sign an arbitrary message on behalr or the group, The

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... group signature is publicly veri liable and allows any outsider to establish the identity or the individual signers, Tbe paper proposes a .l' elj~ccrlij;ed pllhlic key i.l'.I'lii/lg prolocol that allows negotiation between a single entity and a di.l'lrilmled certilieate authority lor an implicit sell~certilied public key, The main objective or the paper is to lind a key management scheme that is suitable lor mobile ad hoc networks, As a solution. the paper proposes a pllhlic kel' II/w/{/gell/elll .l'c!lclI/e, called Ad Iloc Public Key Management (AdllocPKM). I\dlloePKM integrates the advantages or distributed key generation, threshold-multisignatures, sell~certified public keying and sell~certilicales to yield a secure, trustworthy key management service with a high availability feature, The proposed scheme is operated solely by the end-users and docs not require any ojflille trusted third party or a priori sharing or kcying malerial. This addresses the major problem in providing key management services lor mobile ad hoc networks, without compromising security. Key words: Mobile ad hoc networks, security, pairwise key management. public key cryptography. sell~cert ilied publ ic keys, sell~cert ilieates, group-oriented cryptography, threshold-mull isignatures. <)() SO IIIAI'RICA I SIIILFlEOFI'L1,CTRICALENc;INEI'RS Vo1.'l7( I) March 2(){)6