Industrial Device Changeset Verification Through Secure Event Logs
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Solution Overview
Problem
There is a lack of clarity and assurance in applying changesets to field devices, such as sensors and actuators, regarding what changesets have been applied and if they have been applied correctly, which can affect the operational reliability and integrity of industrial processes.
Innovation Solution
A method involving signing and encrypting changesets by a central server, decrypting and applying them to industrial devices, logging the process, and verifying the event log through a Trusted Execution Environment (TEE) to ensure correct application, with secure logging and remote attestation for integrity and authenticity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If changesets are applied to industrial devices without verification mechanisms, then the application process is simple and quick, but the reliability and integrity of the changeset application cannot be ensured
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by signing the changeset before transmission and preparing verification data in advance. The central server signs the changeset with its private key and generates corresponding verification data before the changeset is applied to the industrial device, ensuring that verification mechanisms are already in place before the actual application occurs.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a central server as an intermediary that manages the changeset lifecycle. The central server signs changesets, transmits them to industrial devices, and later verifies the application through encrypted event logs. This intermediary coordinates the verification process without requiring complex local verification infrastructure at each device.
Solution Approach 3:
The system creates cryptographic copies of verification data including signed changesets and event logs. These cryptographic copies serve as immutable records that can be verified without modifying the original changeset or device state, enabling reliable verification through data replication rather than complex verification logic.
2Reliability
If encryption and signing mechanisms are implemented for changesets, then the security and integrity are improved, but the processing time and computational overhead increase
Solution Approach 1:
The central server performs the computationally intensive signing operation in advance before transmission. By signing the changeset and generating verification data beforehand, the time-critical application phase at the industrial device does not need to perform heavy cryptographic operations, reducing processing time during actual deployment.
Solution Approach 2:
The verification process focuses on critical checkpoints rather than continuous verification. The system verifies the signed changeset before application and checks the encrypted event log after application, performing cryptographic verification only at these essential moments rather than continuously during the entire process.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If event logs are encrypted and stored securely, then the protection against unauthorized access is improved, but the ability to query and verify logs becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The central server acts as an intermediary that handles the complexity of encrypted log verification. The server retrieves encrypted event logs from industrial devices, decrypts them using secure keys, and performs verification operations. This centralizes the cryptographic complexity at the server level rather than requiring each device to independently manage complex verification protocols.
Solution Approach 2:
The system transmits copies of encrypted event logs to the central server for verification. These cryptographic copies contain all necessary verification data including digital signatures and hash values, enabling the server to verify log integrity and authenticity without requiring complex local verification infrastructure at the industrial device.
4Reliability
If remote verification is implemented through centralized servers, then the operational reliability is improved, but the system architecture becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The central server performs multiple functions including signing changesets, transmitting updates, retrieving encrypted event logs, and verifying application integrity. By consolidating these diverse verification and management functions into a single multi-functional server, the system achieves comprehensive remote verification capability without distributing complex verification logic across multiple components.
Solution Approach 2:
The central server serves as a mediating infrastructure that simplifies the overall architecture. Rather than requiring direct peer-to-peer verification between devices or complex distributed verification protocols, all verification operations route through the central server, which manages cryptographic operations and coordinates the verification process centrally.
Data Source
AI summary
A method for ensuring a correct application of a changeset includes signing and encrypting, by a central server, the changeset; transmitting, by the central server, the encrypted changeset to the industrial device; decrypting, by the industrial device, the encrypted changeset; applying, by the industrial device, the changeset to the industrial device; logging, by the industrial device, the decrypting and the applying of the changeset as an event log; querying, by the central server, the event log; retrieving and encrypting, by the industrial device, the event log; transmitting, by the industrial device, the encrypted event log to the central server; and verifying, by the central server, the encrypted event log.