Tamper-Resistant Security Module for Application Configuration Integrity
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional techniques fail to properly check the integrity of configuration data by application programs without relying on the operating system, and security modules cannot verify the integrity of configuration files for applications running after the OS is started.
Innovation Solution
An information processing device and method that utilize a security module with tamper resistance to acquire verification key and ID information for a configuration file, verify its digital signature, and update registration version information when the configuration version meets a predetermined condition, allowing application programs to independently check the integrity of configuration data.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If application programs depend on OS access control to check configuration data integrity, then the system can provide basic security protection, but the integrity check becomes unreliable when OS security is compromised by malware or user errors
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a security module as an intermediary component between the application program and the configuration data. This security module independently stores verification keys and performs integrity verification, acting as a mediator that does not depend on OS security. The security module reads verification keys from its own storage, computes hash values of configuration data, and compares them against stored values, providing a separate verification path that remains functional even if the OS is compromised.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the security function from the OS by implementing a dedicated security module with separate storage for verification keys. Instead of relying on the OS's unified access control mechanism, the system divides security responsibilities: the OS handles general access control, while the security module handles cryptographic verification. This segmentation ensures that compromise of one component does not affect the other, improving overall reliability.
2Reliability
If the security module is used to check integrity of boot programs before OS startup, then pre-OS program integrity can be verified, but post-OS application programs cannot use the same mechanism to verify configuration file integrity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent makes the security module universal by enabling it to perform integrity verification for both pre-OS boot programs and post-OS application programs. The security module stores verification keys in its storage unit and provides the same verification mechanism regardless of when the verification occurs. Application programs can access the security module's storage to read verification keys and perform hash comparisons, making the integrity verification capability applicable throughout the entire system lifecycle.
3Reliability
If comprehensive access control authorities are set for all programs and files, then system integrity can be maintained, but the complexity and cost of management increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the critical verification function from the complex OS access control system. Instead of managing comprehensive access control authorities for all files and programs, the system extracts only the essential integrity verification capability into the security module. The security module stores verification keys and performs hash comparisons independently, removing the burden of managing complex access control policies while maintaining security through cryptographic verification.
Data Source
AI summary
An information processing device includes a memory, and processing circuitry coupled to the memory and configured to acquire, from a storage of a security module with tamper resistance, information related to a verification key and ID information of the configuration file for verifying a digital signature for a configuration file, and use the acquired information related to the verification key and ID information to cause an application program to execute processing of verifying integrity of configuration data of the configuration file, acquire registration version information from the storage of the security module, and use the acquired registration version information to cause the application program to execute processing of verifying a configuration version of the configuration file, and update the registration version information to the version of the configuration version when the configuration version of the configuration file and the registration version information satisfy a predetermined condition.