Battery Power - Spring 2015 - (Page 10)

Feature Preventing Counterfeiting: Challenges and Selection Criteria For an Ideal Authentication Solution Robert Rozario Infineon Technologies North America Corp. The counterfeiting and cloning of devices and peripherals are major concerns for original equipment manufacturers (OEMs). These concerns grow when manufacturing is outsourced to offshore Contract Manufacturers (CMs) or even to multiple CMs, which can make it almost impossible to protect the intellectual property (IP) and prevent the unauthorized production of gray market products and peripherals. Legitimate suppliers not only suffer direct revenue losses, but also lose brand reputation if a product is damaged as the result of using cloned peripherals, and may even incur high liability costs. Another problem OEMs face is that many new products are subsidized when introduced to the market, with the intent of profiting on sustained after-market sale of accessories and add-ons to recover the initial investment. This business model is often followed with such products as accessories for game consoles, mobile devices and printer cartridges. Cloning poses a serious threat to this business model; unauthorized accessories can even create a hazard risk to the end-users that increase the potential liability costs and damage OEMs' brand reputation. Tamper- and counterfeit-resistant peripherals not only protect OEMs' brand image and liability, but also protect consumers by assuring the integrity of the entire system and creating the intended user experience. Why Authentication? There are many classes of after-market parts and accessories that are built to be compatible with OEM specifications and standards (notebook AC adapters and batteries). Often there are both legitimate accessories manufactured by authorized third parties, and unauthorized counterfeit/clone devices that appear to be legitimate products but may not meet the operating or safety specifications of the OEMs. Authentication deals with how the system identify authorized parts from unauthorized ones. Authentication of accessories covers all aspects of brand protection such as safety, reliability, quality, profit, performance and liability. It is increasingly important in light of current technology trends, such as high-energy density batteries, different voltage levels in the same form-factor batteries, fast charging and the ability of one single adapter to charge multiple types of mobile devices. Why Hardware Authentication? There are many tactics available to manufacturers to address anti-cloning issues. While in many cases some degree of success is achieved, it is often short lived. Patents, custom connectors and proprietary hardware/software solutions are used to thwart attackers, cloners and hackers with variable success rates. It is always a challenge to make both the platform and its accessories tamperresistant. A relatively new approach is the use of embedded authentication hardware to ensure an accessory or peripheral is authorized for use with a given system. This can provide a high degree of security for counterfeit prevention compared to the alternatives. With different approaches available to the OEMs, it is important to understand the underlying technology to choose the right authentication solution for a certain application. Figure 1. Cryptographic Algorithms Used in Hardware Authentication Solutions 10 Battery Power * Spring 2015 www.BatteryPowerOnline.com http://www.BatteryPowerOnline.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Battery Power - Spring 2015

Battery Power - Spring 2015
Batteries: An Integrated Solution
Preventing Counterfeiting: Challenges and Selection Criteria for An Ideal Authentication Solution
Extending Battery Life
Batter Management with an Intelligent Battery Sensor is Vital to The Success of Future Automotive Designs
Batteries
ICs & Semiconductors
Materials
Testing & Monitoring
Chargers
Components
Conference Preview: Critical Power 2015
Research & Development
Industry News
Application Profile
Calendar of Events
Marketplace

Battery Power - Spring 2015