Patent ID: 8037303

Claim:
A method for providing a secure multicast of data across an unsecured network, the method comprising: receiving, at an IPSec virtual private network device (IVD), a join message identifying at least one private multicast group; identifying, by the IVD, a public multicast group of the unsecured network that is mapped to the private multicast group; generating, by the IVD, a membership report specifying the public multicast group; inserting a public IVD address of the IVD into a source field of the membership report; sending the membership report to the unsecured network; creating an IPSec tunnel through the unsecured network to a network element; generating an IPSec encrypted control message specifying the private multicast group; and sending the encrypted control message through the tunnel to allow the network element to decrypt the encrypted control message and send the decrypted control message to another network element.