Tamper-Proof Location Services via Kernel and TPM Certification
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current operating systems do not leverage location information to make access control decisions, nor do they provide a secure mechanism to verify actions occurred at a specific location, which is necessary for compliance with varying legal frameworks and security policies across different geographical areas.
Innovation Solution
A secure location system that utilizes GPS location data certified by the operating system kernel and a trusted platform module (TPM) to make access decisions, log user activity with location information, and provide a tamper-proof, time-stamped location, thereby restricting access to resources based on geographic location and time.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If GPS location data is made directly accessible to application code using a simple protocol, then ease of operation is improved, but security and reliability deteriorate because untrusted application code can access location data without verification
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a kernel-mode location service as an intermediary between the GPS hardware and application code. This mediator verifies location data through a chain of trust involving the TPM and boot loader, ensuring that only authenticated location information is provided to applications. The kernel-mode service acts as the trusted intermediary that prevents untrusted code from directly accessing raw GPS data.
Solution Approach 2:
The system segments the location data access into multiple trusted layers: the boot loader establishes initial trust, the TPM verifies hardware integrity, the kernel-mode service validates location data, and finally applications receive certified location information. This segmentation ensures that each layer performs its specific security function without requiring applications to directly trust the GPS hardware.
2Reliability
If the system implements a secure chain of trust from boot process to user processes, then reliability and security are improved, but device complexity increases due to multiple security components and verification steps
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a universal chain of trust mechanism that serves multiple functions: it verifies the boot loader, authenticates the operating system kernel, validates GPS hardware, and certifies location data all through the same TPM-based verification process. This multi-functional approach consolidates what could be separate verification systems into a single unified security framework.
Solution Approach 2:
The TPM performs self-verification by maintaining internal state information about the boot process and hardware integrity. The system uses its own internal cryptographic credentials to automatically verify trust without requiring external verification for each component, reducing the need for additional verification infrastructure.
3Measurement precision
If the operating system logs user activity with certified location information, then measurement precision and reliability are improved for audit trails, but loss of information increases due to additional data collection and processing requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only the essential certified location information from the complex chain of trust process and incorporates it into audit logs. Rather than logging all verification details, the system extracts and records the certified location data that is sufficient for compliance and auditing purposes, reducing processing overhead while maintaining precision.
4Reliability
If the system restricts GPS hardware access to kernel mode only, then security is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates because applications cannot directly access location data
Solution Approach 1:
The kernel-mode location service acts as an intermediary that applications can easily access through standard APIs, while it maintains secure kernel-mode access to GPS hardware. This mediator translates simple application requests into secure kernel operations, providing ease of operation for applications while maintaining strict security controls on hardware access.
Data Source
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AI summary
A secure location system is described herein that leverages location-based services and hardware to make access decisions. Many mobile computers have location devices, such as GPS. They also have a trusted platform module (TPM) or other security device. Currently GPS location data is made directly accessible to untrusted application code using a simple protocol. The secure location system provides a secure mechanism whereby the GPS location of a computer at a specific time can be certified by the operating system kernel and TPM. The secure location system logs user activity with a label indicating the geographic location of the computing device at the time of the activity. The secure location system can provide a difficult to forge, time-stamped location through a combination of kernel-mode GPS access and TPM security hardware. Thus, the secure location system incorporates secure location information into authorization and other operating system decisions.