Secure Embedded System Design Methodologies for Military Cryptographic Systems
Abstract
Cryptographic embedded systems are used to safeguard both access to classified data and controls for external subsystems. The assurance required for these systems extends beyond simply denying access to unauthorized users, hardware failures must not lead to the inadvertent activation of protected subcomponents or allow access to classified data. As more systems are transitioning from fixed hardware and state machine designs, for which more formalized failure type and rate calculations exist, there is an increasing need for this level of assurance for software-based processor systems in the absence of equivalent failure type and rate calculations for software. This paper presents a method to guarantee to a quantifiable level of confidence that external components are driven if-and-only-if an authenticated request is received. This is accomplished through the use of software algorithms, data storage formats, and analyzable comparator hardware detection and blocking logic.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Mar 31, 2016
- Accession Number
- AD1025049
Entities
People
- Deborah L. Jensen
- Gary N. Mcgovney
Organizations
- Sandia National Laboratories