7. IPsec applied to the IPv6 protocol

In terms of security, IPv6 offers several advantages over IPv4. Firstly, unlike IPv4, the ESP protocol is included in any IPv6 stack that aims to be complete. This means that all machines with an IPv6 stack can exchange information securely over the network. On the other hand, a communication established with an IPv4 terminal may not necessarily be protected. This will depend on whether or not ESP or AH is integrated into the stack. The second disadvantage of IPv4 over IPv6 lies in address translation (see § 8