Secure Communication With Plaintext-Based Error Detection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional authenticated encryption with additional data (AEAD) schemes fail to detect encryption or decryption errors without increasing communication overhead, compromising functional safety in applications like automotive systems.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a cryptographic method that computes redundancy information on plaintext and additional data, encrypts the plaintext, and generates a message authentication code (MAC) without transmitting the redundancy information, allowing error detection at the receiver by comparing MACs generated from decrypted plaintext and additional data.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional AEAD schemes are used, then encryption and authentication are provided, but encryption or decryption errors cannot be detected
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the authentication process into two distinct parts: (1) the original AEAD MAC computation on ciphertext and additional data, and (2) a secondary MAC computation on decrypted plaintext and additional data. This segmentation allows error detection without requiring a complete redesign of the AEAD scheme, maintaining the original security mechanisms while adding a complementary verification layer.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent performs preliminary decryption of the ciphertext before final authentication verification. By decrypting the ciphertext early in the reception process and computing a MAC on the decrypted plaintext, the system can detect errors before accepting the data as valid, preventing propagation of corrupted data through subsequent processing stages.
2Reliability
If redundancy information is transmitted to enable error detection, then functional safety is improved, but communication overhead increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a self-service error detection mechanism where the receiver independently verifies data integrity by computing a MAC on the decrypted plaintext using the same algorithm as the transmitter. This eliminates the need for transmitting separate redundancy information or checksums, as the verification capability is embedded in the authentication process itself. The additional data already present in the message serves dual purposes: as authentication input and as a reference for error detection.
3Reliability
If MAC computation is performed on additional data, then authenticity is provided, but error detection during encryption/decryption is not achieved
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges two authentication approaches into a unified process: the original AEAD authentication (MAC on ciphertext + additional data) and the error detection authentication (MAC on decrypted plaintext + additional data). Both MAC computations use the same algorithm and share the additional data input, creating a combined verification mechanism that provides both authenticity verification and error detection without requiring separate independent systems.
Data Source
AI summary
A device may compute redundancy information based on plaintext. The device may determine modified additional data based on the redundancy information and the additional data. The device may encrypt the plaintext to obtain ciphertext. The device may compute a message authentication code based on the ciphertext and the modified additional data. The device may transmit a message including the ciphertext, the additional data, and the message authentication code.