An approach for establishing secure multicast communication among multiple
members that participate in a multicast group is disclosed. In one
feature, multiple multicast proxy service nodes (MPSNs) are defined and
control when members join or leave the multicast group. The MPSNs are
logically represented by a first binary tree in which each node of the
first binary tree is associated with a domain of a directory service and
one or more of the MPSNs. A second binary tree is created that has leaf
nodes representing each member. The second binary tree is stored in a
domain of the directory service with a root node that represents one or
more of the MPSNs. The members can each establish multicast communication
and serve as a key distribution center. When a member joins the multicast
group, a new group session key is determined by replicating a branch of
the second binary tree.