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seTPM: A secure element-based TPM utilizing Java Card technology

Fraunhofer AISEC
May 8, 2019
1 min read

seTPM is a research project that implements a TPM on a GlobalPlatform secure element utilizing Java Card technology. The highly flexible architecture of seTPM comprises hybrid support for TPM 1.2 and 2.0 specifications on the same secure element, and to even dynamically load load further native code. Moreover, the architecture allows for adding custom functionalities, optionally using the internal state of the TPM.

For TPM vendors, seTPM reduces efforts when building on an already certified Java Card OS. As an example, seTPM  allows to establish trust in embedded IoT platforms by enabling Trusted Computing based functionality.

The prototype we built allows the seamless integration into the Trusted Software Stack (TSS) of Linux-based operating systems. This makes it possible to run Trusted Computing-based security protocols while supplying a similar security level as provided by dedicated TPM chips.

In addition to the seTPM implementation for the secure element, we developed a seTPM Linux kernel driver offering the implemented TPM functionality to user space.

Further information

Fraunhofer AISEC

Fraunhofer Institute for Applied and Integrated Security AISEC under the responsibility of Prof. Dr. Claudia Eckert is one of the leading research institutions in Europe. Fraunhofer AISEC is focused on development of application-oriented security solutions and their precise and tailored integration into existing systems. Core competences of over 90 scientific and technical members of staff lie in the areas of hardware security and the security of embedded systems, product and intellectual property protection, network security, and security in cloud- and service-oriented computing. Fraunhofer AISEC’s clients operate in a variety of industrial sectors, such as the chip card industry, telecommunications, the automotive industry, and mechanical engineering, as well as the software and healthcare industries. The main goal is to support and improve the competitiveness of our clients and partners in the manufacturing and service sectors as well as those in the public sector.

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