News

License Agreement with Cryptography Research for DPA Countermeasures Patents
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MARIN, Switzerland – August 31st, 2009 – EM Microelectronic – Marin SA (EM), the semiconductor company of the Swatch Group and leading supplier of analog and mixed-signal semiconductors for Ultra Low Power applications, today announced an agreement with Cryptography Research, Inc. (CRI) regarding the use of CRI's patents to enhance the security of EM Microelectronic's tamper-resistant smart card chips against Differential Power Analysis (DPA) and related attacks.

EM pioneered the development of flash-based smart card ICs and is now a leading supplier especially for the flash-based products in the Telecom market. Under the agreement, EM receives the freedom to use CRI's patents as part of its strategy to develop and enhance its security chips used in smart cards. The license also covers software executing on EM's licensed chips, allowing EM's customers to develop their own security countermeasures without a separate license from CRI.

“The license for Cryptography Research's power analysis patents is an important step for EM in its efforts to expand its successful smart card product line with products targeted at security applications like banking and electronic identification" said Peter Umminger, Vice President of Sales and Marketing at EM Microelectronic.

DPA is a form of attack that involves monitoring the fluctuating electrical power consumption of a target device and then using advanced statistical methods to derive cryptographic keys and other secrets. Strong countermeasures to DPA help protect smart cards used in applications such as banking, pay television, mass transit, secure ID, and wireless telecommunications.

Cryptography Research played an important role in the development of DPA countermeasures and holds a significant portfolio of patents covering the fundamental countermeasures to DPA attacks.