ECU ACL Message Detection Without Authentication Overhead
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for detecting anomalies made by abusing Address Claim (ACL) messages in the SAE J1939 standard for Controller Area Network (CAN) buses suffer from communication delays and reduced data capacity due to authentication and key sharing processes, leading to deteriorated communication quality.
Innovation Solution
An electronic control unit (ECU) is designed to determine whether a received message is an ACL message, verify the device name, and perform a predefined determination process to identify unauthorized messages, thereby reducing the need for authentication and key sharing communication, and eliminating the need for a Message Authentication Code (MAC) field in CAN message packets.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If authentication and key sharing communication is performed between ECUs, then security against spoofing attacks is improved, but communication delay increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-storing authentication data (device names and unauthorized message patterns) in the ECU memory before communication occurs. This allows the ECU to perform security verification using pre-stored data rather than requiring real-time authentication communication, thus maintaining security while eliminating communication delay
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the authentication verification function from the communication process itself and implements it as a local check using pre-stored device names. By taking out the authentication requirement from the communication protocol and implementing it as a local database lookup, the system maintains security verification without the overhead of authentication communication
2Reliability
If a MAC field is added to CAN message packets, then message tampering detection is improved, but data capacity is reduced by 8 bytes
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the message authentication function from the message payload and implements it as a separate verification process using pre-stored unauthorized message patterns. By taking out the authentication data requirement from the message structure itself, the system maintains message integrity verification without reducing the data capacity of CAN messages
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary verification mechanism that compares received messages against pre-stored unauthorized message patterns in memory. This intermediary check layer provides tampering detection without requiring modification of the message structure or addition of MAC fields, thus preserving full data capacity
3Reliability
If authentication communication is performed before CAN communication, then unauthorized message detection is improved, but communication quality deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-loading authentication data and unauthorized message patterns into the ECU memory before any communication occurs. This allows the system to perform security verification using local data rather than requiring preliminary authentication communication, thus maintaining unauthorized message detection capability while preserving communication quality
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements self-service by enabling each ECU to autonomously verify messages against its own pre-stored unauthorized message patterns without requiring external authentication services. This self-verification mechanism maintains security detection while eliminating the communication overhead that would deteriorate communication quality
Data Source
AI summary
An electronic control unit includes: a first determination unit which determines whether a message received is an address claim message; a second determination unit which determines, when it is determined that the message received is an address claim message, whether a device name included in the address claim message received is a predetermined device name; and a third determination unit which performs a predefined determination process, when it is determined that the device name included in the address claim message received is the predetermined device name, and determine whether the address claim message received is an unauthorized message according to a result of the predefined determination process.