Apple Inc.

Other

Tristan F Schaap

Jerrold Von Hauck

Craig Alan Marciniak

Conrad Sauerwald

Jeffrey C Lee

Zachary F Papilion

Ian P Shaeffer

Pierre-Olivier J Martel

Andrew D Myrick

Jeffrey R Wilcox

Birju N Shah

James E Zmuda

Robert W Hill

Manfred Von Willich

Jeffry E Gonion

Gerard Richard Williams

Timothy R Paaske

Conrado Blasco

Jacques Anthony Vidrine

Gregory Daniel Hughes

Techniques are disclosed securely communicating traffic over a network. In some embodiments, an apparatus includes a first circuit having a local clock configured to maintain a local time value. The first circuit is configured to determine a synchronized time value based on the local time value, the synchronized time value being an expected time value of a reference clock. The first circuit is further configured to generate a first encryption key by calculating a key derivation function based on the synchronized time value and encrypt a portion of a packet using the first encryption key, the portion of the packet being to be communicated to a second circuit. In some embodiments, the apparatus further includes a first network node coupled to the first circuit and configured to communicate the packet to a second network node coupled to the second circuit and to include the synchronized time value in the packet.

Time-based encryption key derivation

Techniques are disclosed relating to time synchronization in a network. In some embodiments, an apparatus includes a first circuit having a first clock configured to maintain a local time value for a node coupled to a network. The first circuit is configured to send a first message to a second circuit. The first message includes a first nonce. The second circuit has a second clock that maintains a reference time value for the network. The first circuit receives a second message from the second circuit, the second message including a second nonce and is associated with a timestamp identifying the reference time value. The first circuit compares the first nonce to the second nonce to determine whether the timestamp is valid and, in response to determining that the timestamp is valid, uses the timestamp to synchronize the first clock with the second clock.

Network timing synchronization

Techniques are disclosed relating to the secure communication of devices. In one embodiment, a first device is configured to perform a pairing operation with a second device to establish a secure communication link between the first device and the second device. The pairing operation includes receiving firmware from the second device to be executed by the first device during communication over the secure communication link, and in response to a successful verification of the firmware, establishing a shared encryption key to be used by the first and second devices during the communication. In some embodiments, the pairing operation includes receiving a digital signature created from a hash value of the firmware and a public key of the second device, and verifying the firmware by extracting the hash value from the digital signature and comparing the extracted hash value with a hash value of the received firmware.

Secure device pairing

Techniques are disclosed relating to securely communicating traffic. In some embodiments, an apparatus includes a secure circuit storing keys usable to encrypt data communications between devices over a network. The secure circuit is configured to store information that defines a set of usage criteria for the keys. The set of usage criteria specifies that a first key is dedicated to encrypting data being communicated from a first device to a second device. The secure circuit is configured to receive a request to encrypt a portion of a message with the first key, the request indicating that the message is being sent from the first device to the second device, and to encrypt the portion of the message with the first key in response to determining that the set of usage criteria permits encryption with the first key for a message being sent from the first device to the second device.

Secure communication of network traffic

Techniques are disclosed in which a secure circuit controls a gating circuit to enable or disable other circuity of a device (e.g., one or more input sensors). For example, the gating circuit may be a power gating circuit and the secure circuit may be configured to disable power to an input sensor in certain situations. As another example, the gating circuit may be a clock gating circuit and the secure circuit may be configured to disable the clock to an input sensor. As yet another example, the gating circuit may be configured to gate a control bus and the secure circuit may be configured to disable control signals to an input sensor. In some embodiments, hardware resources included in or controlled by the secure circuit are not accessible by other elements of the device, other than by sending requests to a predetermined set of memory locations (e.g., a secure mailbox).

Secure circuit control to disable circuitry

Systems, apparatuses, methods, and computer-readable mediums for preventing return oriented programming (ROP) attacks. A compiler may insert landing pads adjacent to valid return targets in an instruction sequence. When a return instruction is executed, the processor may treat the return as suspicious if the target of the return instruction does not have an adjacent landing pad. Additionally, each landing pad may be encoded with a color, and a colored launch pad may be inserted into the instruction stream next to each return instruction. When a return instruction is executed, the processor may determine if the target of the return has a landing pad with the same color as the launch pad of the return instruction. Return-target pairs with color mismatches may be treated as suspicious and the offending process may be killed.

Marking valid return targets

Techniques are disclosed in which a secure circuit controls a gating circuit to enable or disable other circuitry of a device (e.g., one or more input sensors). For example, the gating circuit may be a power gating circuit and the secure circuit may be configured to disable power to an input sensor in certain situations. As another example, the gating circuit may be a clock gating circuit and the secure circuit may be configured to disable the clock to an input sensor. As yet another example, the gating circuit may be configured to gate a control bus and the secure circuit may be configured to disable control signals to an input sensor. In some embodiments, hardware resources included in or controlled by the secure circuit are not accessible by other elements of the device, other than by sending requests to a predetermined set of memory locations (e.g., a secure mailbox).

Growing community of inventors

San Francisco, CA, United States of America

Tristan F Schaap