Binding ASIC to Trust Anchor via Posture Assessment
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
It is challenging to verify the authorization of application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) in products, making them vulnerable to counterfeiting and gray market modifications, as typical ASICs have limited cryptographic capabilities, and it is impractical to put a trust anchor in every piece of hardware due to increased costs and capacity usage.
Innovation Solution
A system that includes a trust anchor and ASICs, where the trust anchor performs posture assessments to determine if ASICs are authorized by generating and encrypting a random value using the ASIC's long-term key, allowing only authorized ASICs to communicate and run on the product, thereby binding the ASICs to the manufacturer and preventing unauthorized usage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a trust anchor is placed in every ASIC to verify authorization, then security against counterfeiting and gray market modifications is improved, but device complexity and manufacturing cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a trust anchor as an intermediary component that mediates between the ASIC and the authorization verification system. Instead of embedding trust verification logic directly in every ASIC, a separate trust anchor component is introduced that handles the cryptographic verification operations, thereby maintaining security while keeping individual ASICs simple.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the complex cryptographic verification functionality from the ASIC itself and places it in a separate trust anchor component. This extraction allows the ASIC to remain simple and focused on its primary function, while the trust anchor handles the security-critical authorization verification using stored cryptographic keys.
2Reliability
If advanced security features are added to ASICs to enable self-verification, then authorization verification capability is improved, but capacity usage and manufacturing cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The trust anchor acts as an intermediary that performs the cryptographic operations on behalf of the ASIC. The ASIC does not need to implement complex cryptographic algorithms itself; instead, it communicates with the trust anchor which has the capability to perform verification, thus preserving ASIC capacity for its primary computational tasks.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses cryptographic keys and certificates that can be replicated and distributed to multiple ASICs and trust anchors. The authorization verification capability is copied through the distribution of cryptographic credentials rather than requiring each ASIC to independently implement the full verification logic, thereby maintaining capacity efficiency.
3Reliability
If cryptographic capabilities are enhanced in typical ASICs to enable posture assessment, then security verification is improved, but manufacturing complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The trust anchor serves as a specialized intermediary component that can be manufactured separately with enhanced cryptographic capabilities. This allows the main ASIC production line to remain simple and cost-effective, while the trust anchor component handles the security-critical cryptographic operations during authorization verification.
Solution Approach 2:
The system is segmented into two distinct components: the ASIC that performs primary computational functions and the trust anchor that performs cryptographic verification. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently for its specific function, simplifying the manufacturing process for the high-volume ASIC while concentrating cryptographic capabilities in the trust anchor.
Data Source
AI summary
According to certain embodiments, a method comprises receiving an encrypted value from a trust anchor. The encrypted value is received by a hardware component, and the encrypted value is associated with a posture assessment in which the trust anchor determines whether the hardware component is authorized to run on a product. The method further comprises obtaining a random value (K) based on decrypting the encrypted value. The decrypting uses a long-term key associated with the hardware component. The method further comprises communicating an encrypted response to the trust anchor. The encrypted response is encrypted using the random value (K). The encrypted response enables the trust anchor to determine whether the hardware component is authorized to run on the product.