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I didn't see any schematics, but maybe I just missed them. The SAM L11 doesn't have a USB peripheral... are you bit-banging USB or using a second IC or somethi
by ohazi 8y ago
I didn't see any schematics, but maybe I just missed them.
The SAM L11 doesn't have a USB peripheral... are you bit-banging USB or using a second IC or something? I was considering using an L10/L11 for another project, but this omission is what led me elsewhere.
Edit:
Thinking about it some more, it may be advantageous to rely on a second, physically separate chip to handle USB communication, as it's next to impossible to verify that there isn't a backdoor in the secure chip. Chips that are likely to be used as secure elements are probably juicy targets for backdoors, and a USB peripheral would be an excellent place to hide one (e.g. a special "knock" code that dumps the contents of secure memory and resets the chip and is unlikely to be found via fuzz testing).
I really like the concept, though. I think we need more efforts like this, aimed at making our security tools simpler, more open, and easier to verify.
- hoos97 8y agoPart of the value in the concept is the simplicity.
- conorpp 8y agoWe are using the EFM8UB1 chip to implement the USB HID interface, then communicate with the SAM L11 via SPI. After considering many MCUs with USB interfaces, it seems to always be more cost effective to get the non-USB MCU and use the EFM8UB1 (from a BOM perspective anyways). The lesser chance of having a backdoor is a plus! Here's our schematic: https://i.imgur.com/sVQ34em.pnghttps://i.imgur.com/sVQ34em.png https://i.imgur.com/sVQ34em.pnghttps://i.imgur.com/sVQ34em.p... Still have to document this better on Github :)
- craftyguy 8y agoThank you(!!!!) for releasing the schematic!