Abstract: A mobile agent system bridges applications and communications with next generation wireless and mobile ad hoc network infrastructures. A method utilizing middleware turns traditional applications and communications into network centric applications. Agent-based systems are used as a wrapper of existing legacy applications (or new applications that are network naive) and build methods of creating network aware agents. The network aware agents can adapt applications and communications to the changing network dynamics. An algorithmic technique divides private keys into multiple subkeys and distributes them to different nodes on a MANET using mobile agents. The mobile agents react to network dynamics to ensure that all of the requisite key components are kept within a suitable network distance from the host that owns them. Mobile agents can dynamically plan their information delivery routes to optimize any number of criteria: bandwidth impact, time, power, etc.