Secure software and hardware association technique
US8843764B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | Jul 15, 2011 |
| Grant date | Sep 23, 2014 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jul 15, 2031 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH04L9/30
- WIPO fieldDigital communication
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
Authenticated hardware and authenticated software are cryptographically associated using symmetric and asymmetric cryptography. Cryptographically binding the hardware and software ensures that original equipment manufacturer (OEM) hardware will only run OEM software. Cryptographically binding the hardware and software protects the OEM binary code so it will only run on the OEM hardware and cannot be replicated or altered to operate on unauthorized hardware. In one embodiment, critical security information associated with the equipment is loaded from a memory at startup time. The critical security information is stored in the memory, in encrypted form, using a unique secret value. The secret value is used to retrieve a chip encryption key and one or more image authentication keys that can be used to associate program code with an original equipment manufacturer. These keys are used to authenticate the program code.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.