NFC Secure Element Data Wiping Without OTA
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Solution Overview
Problem
Mobile devices with Near Field Communication (NFC) capabilities face challenges in securely wiping secure data from their memory without an over-the-air (OTA) connection to the provisioning server, particularly in situations where OTA connectivity is unavailable, such as during device repair or transfer.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a memory controller that receives secure data and wiping instruction data from a provisioning server, allowing for secure data wipe operations using precomputed wipe scripts and APDUs, even without an OTA connection, through a secure channel and a proxy application that relays commands to the secure element, ensuring secure data deletion.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a traditional OTA connection is required to wipe secure data from the secure element, then security is maintained through centralized control, but the device cannot perform secure data deletion when OTA connectivity is unavailable
Solution Approach 1:
The system downloads and stores wipe scripts and APDUs (Application Protocol Data Units) in the proxy application before OTA connectivity is lost. These pre-computed instructions contain all necessary commands to wipe the secure element, enabling the device to perform secure data deletion independently when needed, without requiring real-time OTA connection.
Solution Approach 2:
The proxy application acts as an intermediary between the secure element and the external provisioning server. It stores wipe scripts locally and executes them when triggered, mediating the wipe operation between the secure element and the previously downloaded instructions, thereby enabling autonomous operation without continuous OTA connectivity.
2Ease of operation
If secure data is wiped from the secure element without OTA connection, then device readiness for reuse is improved, but security control is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
Wipe scripts and authentication credentials are downloaded and stored in the proxy application before the device needs to be wiped. This preliminary action ensures that when a wipe is triggered (e.g., during device repair or transfer), the secure element can be completely cleared of sensitive data immediately, enhancing device readiness for reuse while maintaining security through pre-authenticated commands.
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates local copies of wipe scripts and APDUs in the proxy application, which are then executed against the secure element. These copied instructions contain all necessary authentication and deletion commands, allowing the wipe operation to proceed independently while maintaining the security integrity of the original provisioning server's control logic.
3Adaptability or versatility
If wipe scripts are stored locally in the proxy application, then OTA connectivity requirement is eliminated, but memory usage increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system stores wipe scripts and APDUs as temporary data in the proxy application's memory. These wipe scripts are typically small in size compared to the entire device firmware, and can be overwritten or cleared after execution. The memory resources used for storing these scripts are relatively small and can be allocated dynamically, making the trade-off acceptable for gaining OTA independence.
Data Source
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AI summary
A mobile communications device may include a near field communications (NFC) device, an input device configured to generate a memory wipe command, a memory, and a memory controller coupled with the NFC device, the input device, and the memory. The memory controller may be configured to receive secure data from a provisioning server to the memory, receive wiping instruction data from the provisioning server to the memory for wiping the secure data from the memory, and wipe the secure data from the memory based upon the memory wipe command and the received wiping instruction data.