Secure Enclave Content Rendering for PUC Remediation

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Solution Overview

Problem

Networked computing systems are vulnerable to attacks and potentially unwanted content (PUC), which existing technologies struggle to effectively identify and remediate, particularly in ensuring secure rendering and protection within computing environments.

Innovation Solution

A system and method that renders inbound dynamic content, such as emails and documents, in a trusted execution environment (TEE) or secure enclave, rendering malware inert, stripping inappropriate content, and watermarking or signing the content to assert its secure rendering, with the option to convert content into an 'enclave secured format' (ESF) for secure viewing and sharing.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If content is rendered in a secure enclave environment, then security against PUC is improved, but processing complexity and performance overhead increase

Engineering Contradiction:
ImprovesecurityVSAvoidprocessing complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system segments the computing environment into a secure enclave (trusted execution environment) and a non-secure external environment. The secure enclave isolates critical rendering operations and data processing from the untrusted networked environment, allowing secure content processing while maintaining system-wide functionality. This segmentation enables security-critical operations to occur in isolation without requiring the entire system to operate in a secure manner.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The secure enclave acts as an intermediary between the untrusted networked environment and the internal system resources. Incoming content is first processed and validated within the enclave before being released to the broader system. This intermediary approach allows the system to maintain security boundaries while still enabling useful content processing and sharing operations.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Reliability

If content is processed and validated in a secure environment before sharing, then security and integrity are improved, but processing time increases

Engineering Contradiction:
ImproveintegrityVSAvoidprocessing time
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs security validation, malware scanning, and content processing operations within the secure enclave before the content is released for sharing or display. By conducting these security-critical operations in advance (preliminarily), the system ensures that only validated, safe content reaches the external environment, reducing the need for additional security checks during content distribution.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The secure enclave creates a validated copy of the incoming content that has been processed and certified as safe. This copied, validated content can then be distributed or displayed without requiring the original untrusted content to be present in the secure environment, enabling efficient content sharing while maintaining security guarantees.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #26Copying

Data Source

PatentEP3164995B1Secure enclave-rendered contents
Publication Date: 2020.07.15 MCAFEE LLC
  • EP3164995B1 patent drawingFigure 1~2
  • EP3164995B1 patent drawingFigure 3A~3B
  • EP3164995B1 patent drawingFigure 4A

AI summary

By way of example, a computing system may include an enclave or other similar secured memory location or process. When the system receives new content or data, it may classify the content as potentially harmful and initially render and display the content in the enclave. The user may then select portions of the content to enable or disable in a final version. The content may also be converted to a known "safe" equivalent format that always renders in the enclave. Enclave-rendered content may be signed by the enclave so that they can be considered "trusted" so long as the certificate remains valid and the content is correctly signed.