Verilock to provide secure hardware authentication tech

27th September 2023

Codasip

Sheryl Miles

0 0

Codasip, the specialist in RISC-V Custom Compute, and Verilock, a US-based hardware security company, have entered into an agreement for Codasip to exclusively provide its ASIC customers with future-proof security technology from Verilock.

Codasip has chosen to work with Verilock to implement multiple security functions such as device authentication, firmware signing, original content provenance, and one-time pad encryption based on the patented Entropy Extraction Device (EED) technology. The technology is built on advanced research leveraging chaotic networks for a novel and virtually unbreakable authentication solution.

Industry sectors such as autonomous cars, Industry 4.0, privacy protection, and the IoT all have high-security requirements. From device authentication to over-the-air software updates and secure boot, data encryption based on random cryptographic key generation is a must. However, these innovations also come with threats and vulnerabilities that may not be covered by such a mechanism. ML/AI and quantum computers open the door to malicious behaviors including side-channel attacks.

Brett Cline, Chief Commercial Officer at Codasip, commented: “The semiconductor industry needs authentication solutions infused into the hardware. We also need this technology to be sophisticated enough to stay a step ahead of the bad actors. This is exactly what the ingenious team at Verilock has developed. Through our collaboration, we can provide a unique, future-proof, and flexible approach.”

Verilock was founded in 2021 to commercialise pioneering work between Ohio State University and Potomac Research in the field of dynamical chaotic networks. The company provides a virtually unbreakable authentication solution based on Entropy Extraction Device (EED) technology.

Jim Northup, Chief Executive Officer at Verilock, said: “Current security solutions with hardware at their root have one or a handful of root keys or identifiers. This can be compromised by a motivated adversary using physical or machine learning-driven side-channel attacks. We have reinvented hardware authentication by leveraging chaotic networks. The result is truly quantum-safe systems with new possibilities for flexible and custom implementation. It’s a perfect fit with Codasip’s Custom Compute approach.”