Vehicle OTA Rollback Authentication for Secure Downgrades

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing OTA upgrade methods fail to ensure system security when users upgrade to lower-version software, exposing vehicles to potential security vulnerabilities and unauthorized malicious upgrades.

Innovation Solution

An over-the-air upgrade method and system that generates and uses a software upgrade key to encrypt upgrade information, including a rollback flag, ensuring legitimate lower-version upgrades by verifying the upgrade's legitimacy through software count comparisons and authentication.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If the system supports upgrading to lower-version software to fix vulnerabilities and improve stability, then user needs for rollback are met, but security vulnerabilities arise from unauthorized malicious upgrades

Engineering Contradiction:
Improverollback capabilityVSAvoidsecurity vulnerability
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary authentication and verification actions before allowing a lower-version upgrade. The vehicle controller verifies the upgrade package's digital signature and checks the upgrade count against stored records to ensure the upgrade is authorized and legitimate, preventing unauthorized upgrades while allowing legitimate rollbacks

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The patent introduces an intermediary verification mechanism using digital signatures and upgrade count records. The vehicle controller acts as an intermediary that mediates between the upgrade package and the upgrade process, verifying authenticity and authorization before permitting the upgrade to proceed

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Reliability

If encryption is used to protect upgrade package legitimacy, then confidentiality is improved, but authentication of upgrade legitimacy cannot be ensured

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveupgrade authenticationVSAvoidupgrade verification
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSLoss of information

Solution Approach 1:

The system implements feedback mechanisms where the vehicle controller verifies the upgrade package's digital signature and compares the upgrade count with stored records. This feedback loop ensures that only authenticated and authorized upgrades are permitted, maintaining both confidentiality through encryption and authentication through verification

Inventive Principle:
Principle #23Feedback

Data Source

PatentEP4683302A1Remote upgrade method and system, computer device, and vehicle
Publication Date: 2026.01.21 CHONGQING CHANGAN AUTOMOBILE CO LTD
  • EP4683302A1 patent drawingFigure 1~2
  • EP4683302A1 patent drawingFigure 3
  • EP4683302A1 patent drawingFigure 4

AI summary

The present application relates to the field of over-the-air (OTA) upgrade technology, and discloses an OTA upgrade method and system, a computer device, and a vehicle. In the present application, a network side is used to generate a first software upgrade count that records a software upgrade count, a software upgrade rollback flag that indicates whether a task is a lower-version software upgrade task, as well as upgrade information, encrypted upgrade information, and a software upgrade package that are required by a vehicle side, so that the vehicle side, upon determining, based on the software upgrade rollback flag, to upgrade to lower-version software, decrypts the encrypted upgrade information sent by the network side to obtain new upgrade information, and performs authentication during the upgrade using a magnitude relationship between the first software upgrade count and a second software upgrade count stored on the vehicle side as well as a corresponding relationship between the new upgrade information and the upgrade information, and upon determining that the OTA upgrade is legitimate, upgrades to the lower-version software using the software upgrade package, thereby ensuring the security and legitimacy of the upgrade when a user upgrades to the lower-version software.