Electronic Lock Core Software Isolation Against Malicious Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Electronic locks are vulnerable to malicious code that can manipulate the lock hardware, compromising security.
Innovation Solution
An electronic lock with a trusted lock-core software module and secure data storage, separated from untrusted software, ensures only trusted software can control the lock hardware, using public key infrastructure for verification and isolation techniques to prevent unauthorized access.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If untrusted software is allowed to control lock hardware directly, then ease of operation and flexibility are improved, but security reliability deteriorates as malicious code can manipulate the lock
Solution Approach 1:
The system is divided into a trusted execution environment containing the lock-core software module and an untrusted environment containing other software. The lock hardware is controlled exclusively by the trusted environment, creating a security boundary that prevents untrusted software from directly manipulating the lock while maintaining operational flexibility through the electronic key interface.
Solution Approach 2:
The lock-core software module acts as an intermediary between the untrusted environment (electronic key, user interface) and the lock hardware. All control commands must pass through this verified module, which validates credentials and authorization before allowing hardware state changes, thus preventing malicious code from directly controlling the lock.
2Reliability
If software verification and isolation mechanisms are implemented, then security reliability is improved, but device complexity increases due to trusted execution environment requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The trusted execution environment, secure data storage, and lock-core software module are merged into a single system-on-chip (SoC) component. This integration reduces the physical and architectural complexity that would result from separate verification modules while maintaining the security benefits of isolation and cryptographic verification.
Data Source
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Figure 3
AI summary
It is provided an electronic lock (12) for controlling access to a restricted physical space (16). The electronic lock (12) comprises: electronically-controllable lock hardware (68); a system-on-chip, SoC, (61) comprising a processor (60) and memory (64). The SoC (61) comprises: a trusted environment (67a) comprising a secure data storage (22) and a lock-core software module (20) comprising instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the electronic lock (12) to: evaluate access for a user (6) based on data stored in the secure data storage (22) and control the lock hardware (68) based on the evaluation; and an untrusted environment (67b) comprising untrusted software (25, 26) that is prevented from bypassing the lock-core software module (20) to control the electronically-controllable lock hardware (68).