Microsemi Soc Corporation

G Richard Newell

Paul B Ekas

Russell Robert Garcia

A method for generating a secure nonce using a one-time programmable (OTP) memory within an integrated circuit to provide persistence, the method including randomly selecting k currently-unprogrammed bits in the OTP memory, creating a data set using data derived from current contents of the OTP memory altered by changing the states of the k currently-unprogrammed bits of the OTP memory, and employing as the secure nonce the data set or data derived from the data set. The selected k bits are programmed in the OTP memory.

Security method and apparatus to prevent replay of external memory data to integrated circuits having only one-time programmable non-volatile memory

A method for controlling the use of intellectual property (IP) in an individual integrated circuit includes loading data including the IP into the individual integrated circuit, loading an IP license certificate into the individual integrated circuit, the certificate including identification of the IP authorized for the individual integrated circuit, determining inside the individual integrated circuit whether the IP is authorized for the individual integrated circuit, enabling operation of the individual integrated circuit if the IP circuit is authorized for use in the individual integrated circuit, and imposing a penalty on operation of the individual integrated circuit if the IP is not authorized for use in the individual integrated circuit.

Methods for controlling the use of intellectual property in individual integrated circuit devices

A method for determining if an individual integrated circuit was manufactured using an individual instance of tooling includes collecting from the individual integrated circuit first data representing at least one attribute that varies as a function of the tooling used to manufacture the individual integrated circuit and second data identifying the integrated circuit as having been manufactured using the individual instance of tooling. The first data is compared to a signature of the individual instance of tooling identified by the second data. The signature is derived from the at least one attribute measured from a population of integrated circuits that were manufactured using the individual instance of tooling. The individual integrated circuit is identified as having been manufactured using the individual instance of tooling identified in the second data collected from the individual integrated circuit if the first data correlates to the signature by a predetermined threshold.

Identifying integrated circuit origin using tooling signature

A method for securely booting a target processor in a target system from a secure root of trust includes computing a message authentication code from boot code to be provided to the target processor, including an obfuscated algorithm for recreating the message authentication code in the target processor, serving the boot code to the target processor, executing the boot code to recreate the message authentication code in the target processor, serving the message authentication code back to the root of trust, comparing the returned message authentication code with the message authentication code generated in the root of trust, continuing execution of the boot code data if the returned message authentication code matches the message authentication code, and applying at least one penalty to the target system if the returned message authentication code does not match the message authentication code generated in the root of trust.

Method for securely booting target processor in target system using a secure root of trust to verify a returned message authentication code recreated by the target processor

A method for securely programming a population of authorized FPGAs includes defining the population of authorized FPGAs, generating an encrypted configuration bitstream for the population of authorized FPGAs, generating an individual Authorization Code for each FPGA in the population of authorized FPGAs, feeding the individual Authorization Codes into the FPGAs in the population of FPGAs, feeding the encrypted configuration bitstream into all of the FPGAs in the population of FPGAs, and in each FPGA using the Authorization Code to decrypt the encrypted configuration bitstream to program the FPGA.

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Tracy, CA, United States of America

G Richard Newell