AV Sensor Authentication With Hardware-Backed Secure Sessions
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing autonomous vehicle (AV) sensor security solutions fail to adequately protect against physical attacks and lack end-to-end hardware-backed security, particularly in multitenant systems, leading to potential tampering and data theft, which compromises vehicle safety and security.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a certificate-based key exchange and cryptographic protocol to authenticate and encrypt sensor processors, using cryptographic coprocessors and hardware accelerators to ensure end-to-end hardware-backed security, including secure boot and code signing to verify sensor legitimacy and establish secure sessions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional sensor security solutions are used in autonomous vehicles, then device complexity is reduced, but security against physical attacks and data integrity is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
A cryptographic coprocessor is introduced as an intermediary component between the sensor processor and the external environment. This coprocessor handles all cryptographic operations including key generation, storage, and authentication protocols, thereby providing robust security without requiring the main sensor processor to handle complex security logic directly.
Solution Approach 2:
The security system is segmented into distinct functional components: a cryptographic coprocessor dedicated to security operations, a sensor processor for data acquisition, and a host system for processing. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized for its specific function while maintaining overall system security through defined interfaces and authentication protocols.
2Reliability
If cryptographic protocols are implemented for sensor authentication, then data integrity and confidentiality are improved, but processing time and computational overhead increase
Solution Approach 1:
Cryptographic keys are generated and stored in the cryptographic coprocessor during manufacturing or initial setup, before the sensor needs to operate. Authentication credentials are pre-configured, allowing the sensor to quickly prove its identity when needed without performing complex key generation operations in real-time.
Solution Approach 2:
Complex cryptographic computations are offloaded from the main processor to a dedicated cryptographic coprocessor with hardware-accelerated security operations. This substitution moves security-critical computations to specialized hardware, significantly reducing processing time and computational overhead on the main sensor processor.
3Reliability
If hardware-backed security is implemented in sensor processors, then security against tampering is improved, but manufacturing complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
A separate cryptographic coprocessor is integrated with the sensor processor through a secure interface, rather than requiring the main processor to have complex hardware security features built-in. This intermediary approach allows standard sensor processors to be manufactured using conventional processes while still achieving hardware-backed security through the dedicated coprocessor.
Solution Approach 2:
The security architecture allows for different levels of cryptographic protection to be configured based on specific application requirements. Manufacturers can select appropriate key lengths, authentication protocols, and security features depending on the sensor's intended use, balancing security needs with manufacturing complexity and cost constraints.
Data Source
AI summary
A method includes sending, by a processing device to a sensor component of a sensing system of an autonomous vehicle (AV), a request to establish a session with the sensor component. The sensor component includes a sensor, a sensor controller and a first cryptographic coprocessor, and the processing device includes a second cryptographic coprocessor operatively coupled to a hardware accelerator. The method further includes determining, by the processing device, whether the sensor component acknowledges the request and, in response to determining that the sensor component acknowledges the request, establishing, by the processing device, the session with the sensor component.