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Pre-silicon Side Channel Leakage Simulation

Simulating a microchip’s side-channel leakage before the first silicon run is the next-generation method of protection against side-channel attacks. It is by far the most effective and economical method of designing side-channel attack resistant microchips and electronics. At the design stage, simulating side channel leakage generates immediate feedback about side-channel attack vulnerability and allows designers to get rid of the leakage before a single chip is manufactured.

Traditional side-channel protection is done at the post-silicon stage, when a chip is already manufactured. The chip’s power consumption is then analyzed to see if it reveals the secret key. If it does, the design is adjusted by applying one or more known methods of power consumption smoothing, the chip is manufactured again, re-tested, and the cycle is usually repeated 6-10 times until the consumption pattern is inconspicuous and can’t reveal the secret key over a substantial time period.

On the other hand, pre-silicon power consumption simulation saves time by replacing 6-10 design & production cycles with just one. It’s also far more cost-effective, saving anywhere from tens of thousands to millions of dollars.

FortifyIQ is the inventor of the first accurate pre-silicon side channel leakage simulator, PowerIQ, which allows chip and device manufacturers to simulate power consumption without having to produce the chip first. Chipmakers can embed side-channel attack protections at the design stage, prior to any manufacturing. This new approach saves manufacturers time and money and enables the production of highly secure chips hardened against power analysis and other side-channel attacks.

FortifyIQ, Inc. offers a comprehensive suite of products designed to protect against Differential Power Analysis and other types of power analysis, fault injection, and electromagnetic emission side-channel attacks, including secure IP Cores that are side-channel attack resistant.

 

This is a guest post by FortifyIQ, read more here: https://www.fortifyiq.com/ and here: https://anysilicon.com/vendors/fortifyiq/

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