14 DAY TRIAL // Spansion announced the availability of the first Flash memory subsystem that provides security protection from viruses, attacks and service thefts on handsets. Addressing the growing wireless requirements for more robust security, these MirrorBit solutions protected by Spansion Secure technology provide the highest level of commercially available protection with hardware-based encryption for mobile handsets.
Traditionally, security in handsets has been handled in software and the baseband processor, which are inherently vulnerable to system attacks. By providing security in the same physical package as the memory, Spansion offers stronger protection when accessing the Flash memory and the valuable data and content stored there as MirrorBit solutions protected by Spansion Secure technology safeguard across multiple zones of memory - such as separate, secured areas for the user, for the operator, for content rights objects and for the handset manufacturer - with the potential to assign up to 16 zones. The solution is operating system and chipset independent, enabling handset designers to speed time to market and save on development costs. In addition, it enables direct server-to-memory authentication and secure channel communications similar to a VPN, enabling new business models for the enterprise with remote management of important data distribution.
The MirrorBit solutions protected by Spansion Secure will be offered to customers in a Spansion Multi Chip Package (MCP). The MirrorBit MCP with Spansion Secure acts as a Trusted Execution Environment enabling domain separation and ensuring that critical data, code and security keys are never exposed. This is made possible with some of the most powerful security algorithms, including the Advanced Encryption Standard (AES), a block cipher adopted as an encryption standard by the U.S. government; the Secure Hash Algorithms (SHA), cryptographic hash functions designed by the National Security Agency, including SHA-1 and SHA-2; RSA, an algorithm for public-key encryption; and a digital random number generator.
Spansion's solution is scheduled for mass production in the second half of 2007. Depending on the handset configuration, the Spansion MCP would include: Spansion MirrorBit NOR Flash memory, Spansion MirrorBit ORNAND Flash memory, Spansion 7000C Processor, pSRAM and/or DRAM. Spansion will showcase the features of its new security technology at the 3GSM tradeshow.